How to go about securing the best rate and plan for your credit card in Canada.
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Price protection: Despite cuts, it can still save you money this holiday season + MORE Dec 19th
Many credit card issuers have trimmed price protection or cut it altogether in recent months, but it's still alive and well at a number of banks and issuers. Price protections can help you trim your holiday spending..... More »
July 9 Update: 500 bonus points for stays at the Hyatt Place Kelowna, Last day for the BMO Rewards Mastercard 20,000 point bonus & Wyndham Rewards lowers elite qualification requirements + MORE Jul 10th
Yesterday we wrote about the new Hyatt Place Kelowna that will open next week. What I forgot to mention in that post is that the hotel falls under Hyatt's new hotel bonus offer where you can earn 500 bonus World of Hyatt points per night. The bonus runs until October 30 and there is no need for .... More »
The 3 most overrated credit cards in Canada + MORE Aug 12th
Out of the several hundred credit card options in Canada there are perhaps three dozen cards that get the majority of attention. Rightfully so, some of these cards deserve the attention they get – cards like the American Express Cobalt Card and the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card,.... More »
Canadian Tire says recent breach of e-commerce database involved customer info + MORE Oct 14th
The breached data included names, addresses, emails and birth years as well as encrypted passwords and in some cases, incomplete credit card numbers..... More »
February 22 Update: American Express Green Card Review & a United MileagePlus award ticket flash sale for flights to London Feb 23rd
Here's your Rewards Canada Daily update! Your near daily dose of loyalty program, credit card and travel news, bonuses, deals and more. This update is brought to you by the HSBC World Elite Mastercard which is currently offering a welcome bonus of up to 100,000 bonus points worth $500, ha.... More »
Hello! The 60,000 point sign up bonus for the no fee Best Western Rewards MasterCard returns!
– RewardsCanada.ca
For some time now we’ve had a 40,000 point sign up bonuses for this card while the standard sign up bonus is 20,000 points. Well now the 60,000 point bonus for the mbna Best Western Rewards MasterCard has returned! Last seen about this time last year this offer for the card that has no annual fee needs you to hit some spending targets to get the 60,000 points.You’ll get the standard 20,000 points upon your first purchase with the card. Then an additional 20,000 points will be awarded with $1,000 in spend in the first 90 days of having the card and another 20,000 points if you hit $2,000 in spend in those first 90 days.The rest of the card details are as such:• Earn 1 Best Western Rewards® point for every $1 in eligible purchases‡ • Earn 5 Best Western Rewards® points for every $1 in eligible purchases at Best Western properties‡ • You will be awarded “Gold Status” upon first use of your credit card and “Diamond Status” when you spend $10,000 in eligible purchases within one year◊◊ • No limit to the Best Western Rewards® points that can be earned using the credit card in a year • Use your Best Western Rewards® points in many ways – hotel stays, dining, gift cards and more… Credit unions across the country are gearing up for a battle of words against the federal government after they were ordered to stop using the terms bank, banker and banking to describe what they do.
Q&A: Does being an authorized user on too many cards hurt my score?
– creditcards.com
Removing yourself as an authorized user from credit cards could either hurt or boost your score; it all depends on your own credit history and the amounts you owe
Rate survey: Average card APR surges to record 16.06 percent
– creditcards.com
One credit union bucks the trend by lowering card APR
Should you use RRSPs to pay down the mortgage?
– moneysense.ca
Q: My husband and I will have good pensions.
He is thinking that we should cash out our RRSPs to pay down our mortgage.
He thinks that we will be taxed the same amount either way. Your thoughts?
—Linda
A: Some people struggle with whether they should invest or pay down debt. I think there are good arguments for debt repayment over investing in some cases.
For one, Linda, I’m not a fan of having a big emergency fund in cash earning 1%, while your mortgage or other debt is at 3% or more. It’s a guaranteed losing proposition. Some people like the safety net of an emergency fund. I’d rather someone have a modest cash balance and a secured line of credit as an additional emergency fund which you hopefully never use.
If you forever have $10,000, $20,000 or more sitting idle in cash, you could be missing out on RRSP, RESP or TFSA contributions or have debt that continues to accrue interest at a higher rate in the meantime.
Ask a Planner: Leave your question for Jason Heath »
RRSPs can be a bit different, Linda…
