Earn Enough Hotel Points for 1 Free Night, Targeted Citi Statement Credits, and Why American Express Might Not Give You a Welcome Bonus!

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Update: One or more card offers in this post are no longer available. Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers.

1.   Earn 8,000 Choice Points After 2 Stays

Link:   Choice Summer Promotion

Choice is out with its usual summer promotion, giving you the opportunity to earn 8,000 Choice points after 2 stays.  That’s enough for 1 free night at low-category hotels.

There aren’t a lot of low-category Choice hotels that I’d be excited to visit, but many are often located conveniently along the highway, which is handy for road-trippers.

You can also use your points for a $50 gift card to select merchants, like Amazon, Best Buy, and iTunes, through September 30, 2018.  You might not get as much value as a free hotel night, but this gives you a lot of flexibility for redeeming your points!

To take advantage of this deal, you’ll need to make at least 2 stays by August 17, 2018.  Check here for the full Terms & Conditions.

I wouldn’t change my hotel plans for this promotion, but if you intend to stay at Choice hotels anyway, this is a nice bonus.  Check out the other hotel promotions to ensure you’re not missing a better deal for your upcoming travel.

2.   AMEX Adds Restrictive Language to Their Card Terms

American Express does NOT like folks taking advantage of the valuable card bonuses they offer to the public.

We’ve seen them tighten their rules in the past.  And now, they’ve added a clause that gives them the right to deny you a card bonus if they think you won’t be a profitable customer:

Welcome offer not available to applicants who have or have had this Card. We may also consider the number of American Express Cards you have opened and closed as well as other factors in making a decision on your welcome offer eligibility.

So it sounds like if AMEX thinks you regularly open cards, earn the welcome bonus, and cancel the cards, they may withhold a future welcome bonus from you!  You may be approved for the card, but you won’t be eligible for the bonus.

We don’t know exactly how this will work yet, but if you have a data point with this, please share it in the comments.

3.   Targeted Statement Credits From Citi

Check your email!  Citi is sending out targeted opportunities to earn cash back with some of their cards.

Team member Keith received an offer for a $30 statement credit after making 3+ eligible purchases of $30 or more with a linked Citi card in PayPal by July 22, 2018.

Let us know in the comments if you have a different offer for any of your Citi cards!

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