Credit Card Comparison... CMA's National Bank Platinum MasterCard is best???

[tooty]

This is the credit card from National Bank available from the CMA: http://www.nbc.ca/bnc/cda/productfamilymc/0,6326,divId-2_langId-1_navCode-15948,00.html#protection Does anyone use it? It could be even better than the ScotiaGold visa.

 

1) National gives 1.5 points per dollar spent everywhere while Scotia gives 1 or 4 points per dollar, depending on where you shop. I think National wins here because Scotia has a small list of places that give 4 points per dollar.

2) Neither has an annual fee. Tie.

3) If you redeem points for travel, they both redeem at 100 points per dollar spent on your flight, but National lets you book your own flights from anyone. Scotia makes you book with just their partnered agency. National wins.

[leviathan]

1. The 1.5 points/dollar is pretty good actually. I would say that the 4 points/dollar with Scotia would balance out to about the same as National (considering National is 1.5 everywhere), except Scotia's card is an AMEX which a lot of places do not accept. I would say National slightly wins out in this category because of that.

2. Agreed

3. I use the Scotia rewards site all the time and I've never ever found a time when I could find a cheaper flight elsewhere. If there is, you just have to call up the concierge service and ask them to match the price and they will. So I would say this section is a tie.

 

Overall I agree that the National card is probably better because of the points offered. I'm thinking of switching cards right now, are there any cards that can beat National's offer?

[tooty]

Hold up. There are two cards with 'Gold' in the name. The card Scotia is offering to med students is the ScotiaGold Passport Visa not the Scotia Bank Gold Amex. It seems that the ScotiaGold Passport visa does not have the 4x points per dollar bonus that the Amex card has. Do you have their Amex card?

[leviathan]

Hold up. There are two cards with 'Gold' in the name. The card Scotia is offering to med students is the ScotiaGold Passport Visa not the Scotia Bank Gold Amex. It seems that the ScotiaGold Passport visa does not have the 4x points per dollar bonus that the Amex card has. Do you have their Amex card?

I have the Gold passport VISA, not the amex, but I think you can get either card if you ask for it. So yeah, right now im only getting 1 point/$1. The reason I kept it is you get 5% cashback on all flights purchased, and at the time I was booking so many flights for CaRMS+ERAS I probably saved about $300-400 in flight costs by doing that. Now that im a resident I might get the AMEX card and they will probably waive the annual fee as part of the Scotia professional LOC.

 

That said, you got me interested and I just found a much better card. Capital One's Aspire Travel mastercard. 2 points per dollar, plus 10,000 annual bonus points ($100 value), plus 35,000 bonus points when signing up($350 value). The annual fee is $120 but because you get 10,000 bonus points annually ($100) it really is only $20/year, so with that the 2 points/dollar quickly beats out the National card. If you spend 2500/mo you get $1050 in rewards flights your first year ($930 after the fee) whereas the National card would only get you $450. In the second year after the bonus is gone, the Capital one card would get you $580 after the annual fee, but you'd only get $450 with National. Basically if you spend at least $6000 per year you're going to be better off with Capital One (6k=$120 - $20 fee = $100) vs. National (6k*1.5 = $90).

 

That was way too much number-crunching, I'm going to bed.

[ottawamed.90]

Alternatively, the CIBC Aerogold and Aventura cards are all free for a year right now and all come with a welcome bonus of 15,000 points, which is enough for a flight pretty much anywhere in the Northeast. You earn at 1 point/$ and 1.5 points/$ for gas and grocery purchases.

[Gametime24]

Alternatively, the CIBC Aerogold and Aventura cards are all free for a year right now and all come with a welcome bonus of 15,000 points, which is enough for a flight pretty much anywhere in the Northeast. You earn at 1 point/$ and 1.5 points/$ for gas and grocery purchases.

 

I have the CIBC Aerogold and it's worked pretty well for me. Another nice point is that it goes by general flight region, not price. So for me being an incoming Queens student. I can get roundtrips from Kingston to Halifax for 25000 points, which is no more than it would cost me to roundtrip from Toronto, etc. You can also double up points at places like Esso, you get the 1.5 points/$ on your visa, and you can swipe the aeroplan card that comes with it for more points. And the 15000 bonus points are nice. I have only had the card since mid september (missed paying my tuition on it ) and I already have over 30 000 points. Free flight out to Kingston to start the year and free flight back home for Christmas!

[liszt]

That NBC card is $125/year. You can get two years of the fee waived if you opt for the equivalent MD/CMA (through NBC) platinum card as a med student or resident.

 

That being said, I have the card, and I really like it. I use it for everything except restaurants, gas, and groceries. Great insurance coverage, and redeeming the points is soooo easy & hassel-free, which I really like. i'm not sure about keeping it when my free years are up, however.

[tooty]

Thought the fee was waived completely

 

Here is a guide that covers almost all the free credit cards out there. I think it's safe to say that no student can spend enough to justify using a card with an annual fee.

 

http://www.redflagdeals.com/features/credit-card-rewards-head-to-head/credit/

[Laika]

Do you have their Amex card?

 

I have the Scotia Gold Amex and love it. I spend a lot of money on concerts, sporting events, and dining out, so the 4% bonus adds up quickly. I don't know of any other credit card that offers 4% on entertainment. I had the first year free and 20,000 bonus points for signing up, but will continue to keep the card in the future even with the annual fee. It's easily worth it given my particular spending habits.

[leviathan]

Thought the fee was waived completely

 

Here is a guide that covers almost all the free credit cards out there. I think it's safe to say that no student can spend enough to justify using a card with an annual fee.

 

http://www.redflagdeals.com/features/credit-card-rewards-head-to-head/credit/

 

The capital one card is only $20/year. That's only $1000/year (2,000 points) in spending to break even.

[McMasterHopeful]

Just something extra to consider......points are a great way to earn free flights / perks but I have found that the insurance benefits on some of the cards are worth so much more than points alone and should be considered a priority.

 

Ever had a medical emergency while abroad? Or been in a car accident with a rental? It can be very, very ugly. And cost tens of thousands of dollars.

 

I have had an RBC Gold Preferred Card for over 10 years (I'm a customer, not an employee) and I pay $110 per year for it. It has paid me back 10 fold, at least. Sure, I collect travel points on it and have used it to buy tickets to Europe etc but more importantly I have used the insurance benefit three times.

 

The first was a car accident, and the other two were medical emergencies. I've gone to a private hospital twice while abroad and its pretty scary at first until you see that they rush you in to a very modern hospital (assuming one is available, and they usually are) for imaging, surgery, whatever you need and put you up in a private room. If you need to be repatriated for an emergency, they will pay up to $50,000 to get you home on a private jet. Now that is a useful benefit.

 

Get the insurance first, points second. Especially if you plan to have a family.

[leviathan]

Any of the major rewards cards offer all the insurance options - travel medical, trip interruption, trip cancellation, lost baggage, car rental, hotel theft etc. The difference is usually on reimbursement amounts and duration of coverage.

[McMasterHopeful]

What kind of a lifestyle do you live while abroad that you get into emergencies?

 

I lived in many countries and continents and this has never happened to me. KNOCK ON WOOD

 

In over 40 trips abroad I have had two incidents and they weren't major but still "emergency" and it doesn't take much to bill ten thousand dollars in a private hospital. I am a rescue diver and mountain climber. I dive and climb in nearly every country I go to. @#$ happens, and accidents happen to people while walking their doggy.

 

Oh, since you asked, I just came back from Thailand/Malaysia last week. While there I experienced severe pain in my lower back and a lot of blood in my urine. Went to the hospital. Turned out to be nothing - just a stone. Could happen to anyone. Doctor wanted to rule out all major kidney problems. First hematology and a CT, nothing. Then a contrast CT. More analysis by an American urologist. Still cost a few thousand on that visit. I paid nothing. Insurance for $110 a year is a good thing.