There seems to be no shortage of travel-reward related credit cards and programs on the market today. All of the major airlines have their own frequent flier programs, and typically have also arranged some type of credit card rewards program to go with them. Additionally, credit card companies, seeing the popularity of these frequent flier programs, have come out with their own independent travel programs as well.
Recently, I’ve done some research on Southwest Airline’s Rapid Rewards program, and I’ve been pretty impressed with what I have found.
The Southwest Rapid Rewards Program is pretty straight-forward. It gives Southwest’s frequent fliers points based on the tickets that are purchased. The highest level of ticket – the Business Select — earns customers 12 points per dollar spent. The other two levels have a little lower earn. The Anytime flights give 10 points per dollar and the Wanna Get Away fares earn 6 points per dollar.
The neat thing about Southwest’s program is that these points can be used for flights booked anytime. That means that unlike many other programs out there, there are no blackout dates or huge points upcharges.
Additionally, Rapid Rewards customers have full access to the benefits enjoyed by any paying customer, including 2 free checked bags and the ability to change the flight reservation for no additional fee.
Flights can be redeemed for very low point values. The cheapest flights – the Wanna get Away — can be booked for only 60 points per dollar. With many of these one-way tickets hovering near the $90 mark, it allows customer’s to fly to many destinations for only about 10,000 points — less than half needed by many of their competitors. The other to categories can also be booked using points; Anytime flights need 100 points per dollar while Business Select command 120 points for each dollar in flight value.
The Southwest Credit Card only sweetens the deal by allowing customer’s to earn 1 point for every dollar they spend on daily purchases. These credit cards also include a yearly points bonus that typically is worth close to its annual fee.
While the Southwest Card is not for everyone, it definitely warrants a closer look.
Improving the state of your finances is easier if you know the credit score factors that you need to fix and settle to gain a better rating with the credit scoring bureaus. You can do this on your own, but it is much better if you are going to get help with debt.
There are many debtors who tend to shun away from professional debt relief services because they know that it is going to cost them a lot of money. But if you want to guarantee results that are significant enough to increase your rating, then you will have to think of getting the services as investment to improve your credit score rating.
Importance of getting advice from professional finance counselors
Debt relief companies and financial counsellors are everywhere, you actually need not look for them because there are all over. You will read their advertisements online and even in papers claiming that they can help you reduce your debts. However, be careful of scammers because even deceptive companies can take advantage of debtors looking for help. They will tell you all the wonderful things that they can do to improve your financial situation, but you will never see the results and it will be too late once you realize that they have already gotten away with your money.
If you want to ensure that you are on the right track towards debt reduction, you can ask advice from your creditors themselves. You can arrange for a formal meeting with them and tell them you are in need of assistance. The most that they can do for you is to refer you to a company that can help you out.
Finding reliable debt relief companies
Speaking of scams, you might want to protect yourself from these debt relief companies and you can do so by doing thorough research and background check about the company that you want to get help from. You can check with the local firm for listing of registered debt relief companies, because between a registered company and one that is not, you are much better off and safer with the registered business.
You can also try asking around for referrals, but make sure that the company is located in the state where you live. This is to make sure that in case of trouble, you are both covered by the same law regarding fraud and scam. The good thing about these companies is that they can help you eliminate your debts and at the same time teach you about credit score factors that matter so that you have a good shot of improving your creditworthiness.
With today’s tight economy, it’s more difficult than ever to come by easy credit. People that have the dream of home ownership can no longer get a home loan with just a small down payment and some credit issues. This is just one reason why it’s more important than ever to keep a good credit score.
People who would like to have access to easy credit must maintain or achieve a good credit report score. For those that have a good credit score. They can still get a sign and drive car loan when they have to buy new car. They are able to get approved for credit cards easily by just filling out an application and receiving an instant approval.
Lots of consumers today have credit scores that fall at the bottom of the credit score range. In order to get a credit card these consumers must put up a deposit for a secured credit card or settle for a higher interest rate subprime card. For some, the only access to credit might be a payday loan or a buy here pay here car lot. In the mortgage industry this type of financing or credit is referred to as hard money lending.
Homeowners and home purchasers that want to take advantage of today’s low real estate prices will have to rely on hard money, lease options, or owner financing if they have a less-than-perfect credit score. These consumers will spend in excess of 10% more than those with an excellent credit score.
It’s never too late to improve your credit report score. The first step you want to take is to make sure the you pay all your bills early and never more than 29 days past their due date. Maintain your credit card balances, as close to zero as possible. Keep your three or four oldest accounts open. Settle very recent unpaid collections or charge-offs and do not payoff collections older than two years old without having a deletion letter. Lastly get an easy credit report and check your credit often.