EDIT: I apologize for the couple of spelling mistakes in this video. I completely missed them when watching it back before uploading. Thank you for pointing them out! 🚨 STOP using tools like Rakuten and just use Kudos → joinkudos.com/spencer 👉🏼 Use code "SPENCER" and earn $20.00 after your first eligible purchase!
There is always more and more excellent options to add, man I remember being at 20 cards like two years ago now I'm at triple that lol. Used responsibly no harm done enjoy the cards and hobby!
Being in the military on your early 20s is the best time to snag multiple luxury travel card, not only that it is waived, when you PCS or TDY (mandatory) you also accumulate points when using your card and getting reimbursed by the military. My recent trip to Waldorf Astoria was one of the best trips of my life, all on points 🎉
@@theunstopable8301 i have 3 hilton aspires, 3 amex plat, 1 gold, 1 brilliant, 1 Ritz and 2 CSR 😎 all have a downgrade path when i get out of active duty
After I finalized buying my home I canceled 5 cards that had low or no rewards and opened up 3 higher tier. I was expecting a massive drop but instead my score went up to the highest it’s ever been. It doesn’t always work the way you think.
Thanks for sharing your experience! That’s awesome to hear. Just for anyone wondering why that may have happened, generally credit cards will continue to age on your credit report for 10 years after closing them as long as they were in good standing. Thanks again for the comment man!
45 years old. 41 active cards, only annual feels I pay are for the Schwab Platinum and Chase SP. I only open cards at this point if they have an attractive sign-up bonus.
At 14 credit cards, I am obviously in the Dark Wizards phase. My first goal over the last few years has been to get cards to maximize the amount of points I earn in most of my common spending categories such as utilities, internet service, groceries, dining, gas and so on. The second goal has been to get hotel cards and other travel cards. My third goal has been to go after elevated or special welcome offers. Now that I have made progress in these goals, my new goals are to continue adding more cards to continue working on all three of those goals. At this point, I'm not sure if I'll stop getting new cards because there are still several cards that I really want to get.
Happy to have you in the club!! I love your approach to the credit card game and it's pretty much exactly in line with what I discussed here which is reassuring. I'm in the same boat as you though... adding cards indefinitely is the route I see myself taking to maximize every dollar I spend. The only time I see that stopping is if my income rises to a point where the time spent on these cards becomes not worth it anymore. Thanks for the comment as always brotha!
It all comes down to smart financial habits at the end of the day. As I mentioned in the video, you HAVE to use a credit card like a debit card and not increase your spending because of high credit limits. As long as you can use your cards responsibly, it can be a profitable hobby, but you can't forget that key point.
Apps make it a lot easier, both from tracking and payment needs. Easy to set up auto pay. Most people with that many have a few they barely ever use also.
Having a strict budget, and a plan for which budget category will be on which card, keeps your spending under control. Adding labels to each card to avoid mixups, and having a printed copy of your budget spreadsheet in your wallet can also be helpful.
The right answer is to have your oldest cards be no annual fee cards. Freedom and Double Cash are great examples. After that just have as many that you can MANAGE properly. Meaning that the annual fees make sense, you dont let them close out for lack of usage, etc. This hobby is about managing cards. Evaluating what makes sense over time. Moving or decreasing lines of credit. Its not a passive hobby.
Back in 2000 my oldest card was a Citi card and I forgot to use it in 2015 and it closed due to inactivity but had 100% payment history. It will drop off next year. My oldest Card was a freedom unlimited at 41. I had 44 recently product changed to a freedom flex.
@@isao_the_2nd as I mentioned, it’s not necessarily about what card you get at the beginning as long as it has no annual fee and helps you start building credit. But if you have suggestions for people to look into feel free to leave those here!
@@SpencerJohnsonOfficial I guess what I meant to say was, Chase is the best for beginners, plus the bank's flexible product changing ability that makes it a cheat code in order to evade the 5/24 rule, and it's more suitable to those who prefer not to open new accounts on a regular basis and/or if the cardholder is uninterested in sign-up bonuses. Those are critical factors that come in clutch for Chase
A nice mix of card benefits, and enough to demonstrate responsibility, but not too many to lose control, or to start having accounts closed due to insufficient use. Thanks for sharing as usual Spencer.
Which Visa or Mastercard do you recommend I pair with my current amex gold and platinum for travel? This is because some places don’t take amex and I would like a good non-amex travel card for daily shopping when needed abroad. Thank you.
You want to pay your card off in full by the payment due date. However, as I mentioned, having a 1-2% utilization on your statement close date is optimal. You just never want to leave a balance rolling into the next month.
So if you add a new card that has 0 percent interest for 15 months do you still have to pay that off each month or pay it all at once at before your end of 15 monthe for instance your credit limit is 10k but if 10 k is earning 5% in a money market account wouldnt that better?
Good Video Spencer, it’s easy to get caught up in the game with all the card offerings so explaining the game in this way might help people better understand it better before they get caught up in debt or AFs for cards that don’t fit them
So question… I’ve been trying to rebuild my credit after it previously being BAD! Last year I was able to get my car and that’s been helping significantly, currently at about 700-750 across all three… I was just approved for a Best Buy visa… should I wait to apply for another card? I wanted to get more of a everyday card? Not sure any help would help! Lol
Showing off your inner need here. Not a bad thing by any means, I finally have a way to ex0lain levels to Mrs Woodzy as pur home literally has a wand display and all the Wizarding houses as you walk in as an entrance banner lol. After activating a horcrux, I'm back in the pure blood stage bordering into becoming a dark wizard. I've canceled a couple and added more. I have a core setup and two wallets I carry depending on if I'm traveling or not. I really am at thus point sub hunting. Sometimes two at a time. All the major multiplier categories are covered at least 1-2 quarters a year. Keep up the great content bud. Congrats on 4M views and 21k subscribers
Hahah I let it slip through a bit. That's awesome to hear your wife is into Harry Potter as well. I love it! As for your setup, I love your approach to the credit card game. It's always important to keep analyzing your setup throughout the years and downgrading or canceling those cards that don't make sense for you any more. Thanks for the support as always my man!!
Yes it is! At least specific to Chase if that's what you're asking. You can transfer between personal and business as long as they're both associated with your SSN and on your Chase account.
I appreciate you! And it's funny, I did so much research on that before because it's more controversial than you'd think. This is what I landed on though: Although both of his parents are wizards, his mom is a muggle-born. Muggle-borns are first generation wizards. In order for someone to be considered a “pure blood” wizard, you need at least 3 generations of wizards on BOTH sides. The lore gets crazy here lol 😂
After you get to stage 3, what would be the net income per month needed to bring in to pay for the fees and the spending required to maximize the points, on top of living expenses with the median household costa as it stands in 2024?
In reality, there's no number you can assign to that. What cards you get is completely up to you and while some of us on team travel get a lot of value from the high annual fee cards, there's nothing wrong with building a no annual fee setup either. Income isn't necessarily correlated with the number of cards you have.
@SpencerJohnsonOfficial true, you can have credit cards regardless of income, but with these cards to "maximize" the rewards these would have to align with your spending habits as well.
You're not tripping! I used a similar analogy in my video on this topic a couple of years ago. That one was Star Wars themed though. I appreciate you watching the channel for so long!
As many as you can responsibly handle, juggling a lot of cards makes it hard to utilize all the rewards across all said cards. I have tons of credit cards, it's become a collectors thing ha, I use them all regularly and through rotation. Used responsibly there is no correct number each profile varies, as long as you follow the pay in full monthly mentality and never lean on credit as a second income you are fine.
Absolutely right!! It all comes down to personal preference, but like you said, the key is using them responsibly. Thanks for the comment as always brotha!
If Voldemort had a credit card he’d definitely have the Venture X. He seems like the type of guy who cares about his effective annual fee (Clearly I’ve never seen HP)
I appreciate you watching! And to reiterate a previous response of mine, it's funny, I did so much research on whether Harry is a half-blood or not before filming because it's more controversial than you'd think. This is what I landed on though: Although both of his parents are wizards, his mom is a muggle-born. Muggle-borns are first generation wizards. In order for someone to be considered a “pure blood” wizard, you need at least 3 generations of wizards on BOTH sides. The lore gets crazy here lol
To reiterate a previous response of mine, it's funny, I did so much research on whether Harry is a half-blood or not before filming because it's more controversial than you'd think. This is what I landed on though: Although both of his parents are wizards, his mom is a muggle-born. Muggle-borns are first generation wizards. In order for someone to be considered a “pure blood” wizard, you need at least 3 generations of wizards on BOTH sides. The lore gets crazy here lol
As many as you're approved for.. 😂😂😂😂 ... I got 13 in the last 18 months, including a Chase after the 5 card rule... scores are in 700s...I have 40+ cards...
Yup if the bank will approve you then take what you are given, no harm as most folks with tons of cards use them responsibly it's the reason for the constant approvals.
The smartest financial habit is to limit credit card usage. You aren't gaming anything. Credit card companies have spent billions on marketing, demographic studies, and advertising. You won't win against them. Besides, most people don't need multiple cards.
I’ll make sure to tell my husband we’re going to stop using our cards and playing the game. I guess that $20k trip to Greece our family is taking this Christmas for a total of $2500 is all a scam. So it my 830 FICO score. ;o)
Im going to call this a credit card primer video Spencer. Great stuff man. You covered the basics very well before going advanced in the end. Good stuff brother!
It looks like you're someone on team cashback for now, so I'd target cards with elevated welcome offers or ones that help you cover some of your highest spending categories at a high rate. If you want to start adding travel cards though, you have much more to consider!
EDIT: I apologize for the couple of spelling mistakes in this video. I completely missed them when watching it back before uploading. Thank you for pointing them out!
🚨 STOP using tools like Rakuten and just use Kudos → joinkudos.com/spencer
👉🏼 Use code "SPENCER" and earn $20.00 after your first eligible purchase!
I have like 19 cards now, but I'm like Ariel from the Little Mermaid, I wantttt moreeeeeeeeee
Hahah I get that for sure!
There is always more and more excellent options to add, man I remember being at 20 cards like two years ago now I'm at triple that lol. Used responsibly no harm done enjoy the cards and hobby!
it’s addicting
It's like Pokémon, gotta catch em all!
Being in the military on your early 20s is the best time to snag multiple luxury travel card, not only that it is waived, when you PCS or TDY (mandatory) you also accumulate points when using your card and getting reimbursed by the military. My recent trip to Waldorf Astoria was one of the best trips of my life, all on points 🎉
What cards do you have?
@@theunstopable8301 i have 3 hilton aspires, 1 ritz carlton, 1 brilliant, 3 platinums, 1 gold, and 2 chase sapphire reserves.
That's a great tip! I appreciate your service btw!
@@theunstopable8301 i have 3 hilton aspires, 3 amex plat, 1 gold, 1 brilliant, 1 Ritz and 2 CSR 😎 all have a downgrade path when i get out of active duty
Definitely but only if young servicemembers are financially responsible….too many aren’t.
After I finalized buying my home I canceled 5 cards that had low or no rewards and opened up 3 higher tier. I was expecting a massive drop but instead my score went up to the highest it’s ever been. It doesn’t always work the way you think.
Thanks for sharing your experience! That’s awesome to hear. Just for anyone wondering why that may have happened, generally credit cards will continue to age on your credit report for 10 years after closing them as long as they were in good standing. Thanks again for the comment man!
45 years old. 41 active cards, only annual feels I pay are for the Schwab Platinum and Chase SP. I only open cards at this point if they have an attractive sign-up bonus.
I'm doing the same with over 30..I look for 0% for over a year 😊
At 14 credit cards, I am obviously in the Dark Wizards phase. My first goal over the last few years has been to get cards to maximize the amount of points I earn in most of my common spending categories such as utilities, internet service, groceries, dining, gas and so on. The second goal has been to get hotel cards and other travel cards. My third goal has been to go after elevated or special welcome offers. Now that I have made progress in these goals, my new goals are to continue adding more cards to continue working on all three of those goals. At this point, I'm not sure if I'll stop getting new cards because there are still several cards that I really want to get.
Happy to have you in the club!! I love your approach to the credit card game and it's pretty much exactly in line with what I discussed here which is reassuring. I'm in the same boat as you though... adding cards indefinitely is the route I see myself taking to maximize every dollar I spend. The only time I see that stopping is if my income rises to a point where the time spent on these cards becomes not worth it anymore. Thanks for the comment as always brotha!
I'm in Stage 4 with 13 credit cards. I'm in my gardening phase.
Love to hear it! Gardening can be super beneficial.
I genuinely don’t know how people can keep track of not spending too much on like 10 credit cards because then you’d have to pay it all back
It all comes down to smart financial habits at the end of the day. As I mentioned in the video, you HAVE to use a credit card like a debit card and not increase your spending because of high credit limits. As long as you can use your cards responsibly, it can be a profitable hobby, but you can't forget that key point.
Apps make it a lot easier, both from tracking and payment needs. Easy to set up auto pay. Most people with that many have a few they barely ever use also.
Having a strict budget, and a plan for which budget category will be on which card, keeps your spending under control. Adding labels to each card to avoid mixups, and having a printed copy of your budget spreadsheet in your wallet can also be helpful.
Spencer, I give you this sock. You are now free from the credit card game
Hahaha thank you sir 🧦
The right answer is to have your oldest cards be no annual fee cards. Freedom and Double Cash are great examples. After that just have as many that you can MANAGE properly. Meaning that the annual fees make sense, you dont let them close out for lack of usage, etc. This hobby is about managing cards. Evaluating what makes sense over time. Moving or decreasing lines of credit. Its not a passive hobby.
Agreed! It's a very hands on hobby to have, but can be very profitable if done responsibly. Thanks for being here so early! 🥉
@@SpencerJohnsonOfficial 4:56 i don't think Discover-It card is the gold standard in terms of credit building anymore
Back in 2000 my oldest card was a Citi card and I forgot to use it in 2015 and it closed due to inactivity but had 100% payment history. It will drop off next year. My oldest Card was a freedom unlimited at 41. I had 44 recently product changed to a freedom flex.
@@isao_the_2nd as I mentioned, it’s not necessarily about what card you get at the beginning as long as it has no annual fee and helps you start building credit. But if you have suggestions for people to look into feel free to leave those here!
@@SpencerJohnsonOfficial I guess what I meant to say was, Chase is the best for beginners, plus the bank's flexible product changing ability that makes it a cheat code in order to evade the 5/24 rule, and it's more suitable to those who prefer not to open new accounts on a regular basis and/or if the cardholder is uninterested in sign-up bonuses. Those are critical factors that come in clutch for Chase
Not gonna lie, as a person who hasn’t seen Harry Potter, I was caught off guard 🤣
Love your content.
- Ivan
Hahah I hope it still made sense for you. Thanks for the support as always brotha!
A nice mix of card benefits, and enough to demonstrate responsibility, but not too many to lose control, or to start having accounts closed due to insufficient use. Thanks for sharing as usual Spencer.
Agreed!! Thanks for the comment as always!
I feel like there was a lot more spelling errors in this video than normal, but still very valuable information
Oh dang, I'm sorry to hear you found some spelling errors! I must have missed those in all of my reviews. I appreciate you!
@@SpencerJohnsonOfficialstuck = suck
Balnaces = balances
Good break down. Amazon prime is top tier and should be in everyone strategy
I’m glad you enjoyed Ryan! The Amazon card is really solid for sure.
I agree, many of these channels concentrate too much on travel cards
On 13:54 you have Citi Strata premier on both sides, just saying
Thanks for the heads up!!
Spelling errors at 6:48 and 7:06 heads up
I didn't see the one at 6:48, but thank you for the heads up on those! I must have missed them in all of my reviews unfortunately.
Love the info! Adding the Harry Potter theme is clutch *chef’s kiss* 😂
I love to hear it! I'm a big Harry Potter fan so I had to work it in lol
This is great. Creative and informative
Thank you so much!! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Twinning at 15 Spencer. It's an addiction and a game.
Thanks for the info + video!
Of course brotha!
Which Visa or Mastercard do you recommend I pair with my current amex gold and platinum for travel? This is because some places don’t take amex and I would like a good non-amex travel card for daily shopping when needed abroad. Thank you.
15 CC how do you rotate
using them? And must
they be used periodically?
I have 5 personal cards and 1 business card. All no annual fees and give 2-5% in every category.
Sounds like a great setup!
You say pay it off in it full but I’ve heard to at least leave a little balance to report to the credit bureau zero is nothing to report
You want to pay your card off in full by the payment due date. However, as I mentioned, having a 1-2% utilization on your statement close date is optimal. You just never want to leave a balance rolling into the next month.
Pay off the statement balance..additional charges won't accrue interest..never accrue interest, your just giving away money doing that..830 credit score 😊
So if you add a new card that has 0 percent interest for 15 months do you still have to pay that off each month or pay it all at once at before your end of 15 monthe for instance your credit limit is 10k but if 10 k is earning 5% in a money market account wouldnt that better?
I’ve learned so much in the past month about credit cards from videos like this 👍👍👍
That’s so awesome to hear! I appreciate you checking out my content and I hope they continue to find value in them 🫡
Good Video Spencer, it’s easy to get caught up in the game with all the card offerings so explaining the game in this way might help people better understand it better before they get caught up in debt or AFs for cards that don’t fit them
Thanks so much man! The game can definitely be intimidating, but as long as you play it responsibly it can be really rewarding!
So question… I’ve been trying to rebuild my credit after it previously being BAD! Last year I was able to get my car and that’s been helping significantly, currently at about 700-750 across all three… I was just approved for a Best Buy visa… should I wait to apply for another card? I wanted to get more of a everyday card? Not sure any help would help! Lol
Showing off your inner need here. Not a bad thing by any means, I finally have a way to ex0lain levels to Mrs Woodzy as pur home literally has a wand display and all the Wizarding houses as you walk in as an entrance banner lol. After activating a horcrux, I'm back in the pure blood stage bordering into becoming a dark wizard. I've canceled a couple and added more. I have a core setup and two wallets I carry depending on if I'm traveling or not. I really am at thus point sub hunting. Sometimes two at a time. All the major multiplier categories are covered at least 1-2 quarters a year.
Keep up the great content bud. Congrats on 4M views and 21k subscribers
Hahah I let it slip through a bit. That's awesome to hear your wife is into Harry Potter as well. I love it! As for your setup, I love your approach to the credit card game. It's always important to keep analyzing your setup throughout the years and downgrading or canceling those cards that don't make sense for you any more. Thanks for the support as always my man!!
I feel attacked reading the title, I have 7 right now but this video was very informative
Hahah hopefully not too attacked! I'm glad you found this one valuable.
hey, i’m starting to build my trifecta at the moment and my question, is it possible to transfer points from personal cc to business cc?
Yes it is! At least specific to Chase if that's what you're asking. You can transfer between personal and business as long as they're both associated with your SSN and on your Chase account.
Anyone have any advice to give on how to best track all your card balances in one place?
New to the card game.
I’m trying get the chase duo.
I have the CSP that I just got not too long ago
Have two other cards from capital one
That's awesome Frankie! I hope your setup is treating you well!
Well crafted story
I appreciate that a ton!!
Great vid! Harry wasn't a half blood tho 🤣 Hermione was tho so principle applies
I appreciate you! And it's funny, I did so much research on that before because it's more controversial than you'd think. This is what I landed on though: Although both of his parents are wizards, his mom is a muggle-born. Muggle-borns are first generation wizards. In order for someone to be considered a “pure blood” wizard, you need at least 3 generations of wizards on BOTH sides.
The lore gets crazy here lol 😂
@@SpencerJohnsonOfficialDamnnn I did not realize that, but that's understandable based on the lore then
After you get to stage 3, what would be the net income per month needed to bring in to pay for the fees and the spending required to maximize the points, on top of living expenses with the median household costa as it stands in 2024?
In reality, there's no number you can assign to that. What cards you get is completely up to you and while some of us on team travel get a lot of value from the high annual fee cards, there's nothing wrong with building a no annual fee setup either. Income isn't necessarily correlated with the number of cards you have.
@SpencerJohnsonOfficial true, you can have credit cards regardless of income, but with these cards to "maximize" the rewards these would have to align with your spending habits as well.
the limit does not exist
Hahah I feel you 🥈
Am I tripping or did you use this analogy for this topic in a longer video before?
You're not tripping! I used a similar analogy in my video on this topic a couple of years ago. That one was Star Wars themed though. I appreciate you watching the channel for so long!
As many as you can responsibly handle, juggling a lot of cards makes it hard to utilize all the rewards across all said cards. I have tons of credit cards, it's become a collectors thing ha, I use them all regularly and through rotation. Used responsibly there is no correct number each profile varies, as long as you follow the pay in full monthly mentality and never lean on credit as a second income you are fine.
Absolutely right!! It all comes down to personal preference, but like you said, the key is using them responsibly. Thanks for the comment as always brotha!
If Voldemort had a credit card he’d definitely have the Venture X. He seems like the type of guy who cares about his effective annual fee
(Clearly I’ve never seen HP)
Hahaha I appreciate you nonetheless 😆
Harry is definitely a pure blood, lol. Regardless- I appreciate the HP theme ♥️
I appreciate you watching! And to reiterate a previous response of mine, it's funny, I did so much research on whether Harry is a half-blood or not before filming because it's more controversial than you'd think. This is what I landed on though: Although both of his parents are wizards, his mom is a muggle-born. Muggle-borns are first generation wizards. In order for someone to be considered a “pure blood” wizard, you need at least 3 generations of wizards on BOTH sides.
The lore gets crazy here lol
10:25
Have 30 CC's & 10 on line /line of credit : 41 ❤
I think 10 is more than enough for me haha I only use my Chase trifecta often
I get that! The answer all depends on the individual, and your strategy suits you well which is all that matters!
@@SpencerJohnsonOfficial true, i'm still rocking the chase trifecta
Love the Harry Potter reference
I love to hear it!
Harry is actually pure blood since both his parents are magic
To reiterate a previous response of mine, it's funny, I did so much research on whether Harry is a half-blood or not before filming because it's more controversial than you'd think. This is what I landed on though: Although both of his parents are wizards, his mom is a muggle-born. Muggle-borns are first generation wizards. In order for someone to be considered a “pure blood” wizard, you need at least 3 generations of wizards on BOTH sides.
The lore gets crazy here lol
Yo, yo YO! HP/WW fan here
Let's go!! I hope you enjoyed the analogy here!
As many as you're approved for.. 😂😂😂😂 ... I got 13 in the last 18 months, including a Chase after the 5 card rule... scores are in 700s...I have 40+ cards...
Yup if the bank will approve you then take what you are given, no harm as most folks with tons of cards use them responsibly it's the reason for the constant approvals.
Haha that's one way to go about it for sure! My velocity isn't quite that high, but I know it works well for some including yourself it seems!
Full Blood here
Love it
Harry was a pureblood
Harry Potter. 😂 RIP... I'm dead. 😅😂.. who has more fun, Dumbledore or Vordamort?
Hahah I'm glad that provided some entertainment. Your question is one we may never truly know the answer to 😉
The smartest financial habit is to limit credit card usage. You aren't gaming anything. Credit card companies have spent billions on marketing, demographic studies, and advertising. You won't win against them. Besides, most people don't need multiple cards.
I’ll make sure to tell my husband we’re going to stop using our cards and playing the game. I guess that $20k trip to Greece our family is taking this Christmas for a total of $2500 is all a scam. So it my 830 FICO score. ;o)
@@hrw3mom103 , your score is lower than mine.
@@hrw3mom103 , it's good you're getting out of the game. It'll be better for you over time. My FICO score is higher.
You are not going to get ahead by spending more.
👍🏾
I guess I'm a Dark Wizard.
🧙🏼♂
😊
👑
Im going to call this a credit card primer video Spencer. Great stuff man. You covered the basics very well before going advanced in the end. Good stuff brother!
I appreciate you Jon! That really means a lot. Trying to do my best to make my videos relevant for everyone in the credit card space!
Excellent video brother!!
Right now I have
AMEX Blue Preferred
Discover IT & Discover IT Student
Capital one quick silver
Stuck on which one should be my next
It looks like you're someone on team cashback for now, so I'd target cards with elevated welcome offers or ones that help you cover some of your highest spending categories at a high rate. If you want to start adding travel cards though, you have much more to consider!