Best Credit Card for New Investor?

Question

I am currently under contract to purchase my first duplex. I am looking to start investing slowly and hope to acquire and fix up a few rental properties in the next couple of years.  I would like to keep my personal finances separate from my real estate investing  finances and was looking into getting a new credit card that will strictly be used to pay for renovations/taxes/insurance/expenses etc.  I was wondering if anyone had any advice on which cards to look into? Should I get a personal credit card or a small business credit card?   Are there any major advantages of one card compared to another? I have a good credit score (around 765), I do not travel often so maybe i should look more into cards with cash back advantages? Any that would be better for the short term with one rental unit vs long term for 10-20 units? There are so many credit cards out there, any help is appreciated.

Aaron K. · Answer

I love Citi double cash for everything you get 2% back on everything assuming you pay your bill in full every month.  It probably isn't necessary to get a small business card unless you have an LLC or other organized company, just make sure you save your receipts for tax time.

Matthew Jones · Answer

I look for the cards with the longest 0% interest free periods, and then any cash back offers on top of that are a plus. I currently have a Chase Freedom Unlimited which was 18 months 0% interest with 1% cash back on everything. I dont really care about minimal cash back or travel points....I think borrowing free money for 1.5 years is worth way more than 1% cash back. More money in your pocket = more deals to fund!

However, I usually have the money to pay off the balances on my cards at any time, and usually pay them off right before the introductory period. Once in a while, I will let a balance of $500 or so linger and let the credit card companies collect a little interest off me, so they will keep sending me better offers.

Julio Miranda · Answer

It entirely depends on what you look for in a card. The double cash back card from Citi is a solid card for strictly cash back on everyday purchases, it offers $100 cash back on $500 in purchases the first three months, I don't believe theres a introductory period for interest. You also have similar cash back cards like the Chase Freedom card that offers 1% cash back on every purchase, and 5% up to $1,500 on rotating categories(home improvement is usually one, gas stations, warehouse stores, etc.) biggest perk to a card like that is the 15 month 0% interest and a $150 bonus when you spend $500 within the first three months. There are other cards that yield more in value but have annual fees and are more geared towards travel. Theres also a freedom Unlimited that offers the exact bonus and interest, but offers a flat 1.5% cash back with no rotating categories.

Craig Curelop · Answer

@Anthony M. - If you are looking to do a lot of rehabs, I would think the Home Depot card would do you good. I believe it is 0% interest for ~12 months.

For cash back, I here the capital one credit card is pretty good too!

Sorry if this isn't too much help. I'm a big traveler so I always look for the best travel credit cards :).

Roland Barbeito · Answer

Look no further than the Chase Ink Business Preferred

Chase offers the Chase Ink Business Preferred Card with 80,000 Ultimate Rewards Bonus Points after making $5,000 in purchases during the first 3 months from account opening. Thanks drdvlsCard Features:

• Earn 80,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $1,000 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
• Earn 3 points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year
• Earn 1 point per $1 on all other purchases–with no limit to the amount you can earn
• Points are worth 25% more when you redeem for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Redeem points for travel, cash back, gift cards and more – your points don't expire as long as your account is open
• No foreign transaction fees
• Employee cards at no additional cost
• $95 Annual Fee

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Ashley Shearer · Answer

@Anthony M. just started looking for a CC for myself, for the exact same reasons as you. Did you settle on a card? Any feedback?

Deren Huang · Answer

If you will be purchasing a ton of material at Lowes or Home depot, look into their programs.

Lowes is 5% off every day with some 10% off, I love the tracking system of PO's to easily itemize for multiple projects.

Matthew Jones · Answer

@Aaron Klatt all valid points my man! Although, I dont believe that carrying a small balance negatively impacts your credit score. As far as I know, anything below a utilization rate of 30% will either maintain or improve you credit score, as long as you make on time payments. I dont actually use credit cards that often, as I like to live at or below my means. However, I will use them for big purchases once or twice a year. For example, we renovated a kitchen in one of our rental units and we had the cash to pay for it, but I put it on a credit card because it was interest free for 18 months, plus 1.5% cash back, as well as a $150 bonus....so now ill just let that balance linger and make my monthly payments and then when the intro period is close to over, ill pay it off and maybe never use that card again, or maybe pay it all off except a couple hundred so they can get a few bucks of interest on me.

One thing I have noticed is that if they never earn any interest off you, they wont let you open other cards or give you anymore good offers.....they will reject your application.

Really, I treat credit cards like a game....which is how I treat everything in life. It is all a big game, and winning can be done in many ways! I make them work for me the way I use them, but everyone uses them difference. My credit score is in the 820s and I am happy with that. Everyone just has to figure out how to use them to their advantage!

Aaron K. · Answer

@Matthew Jones I agree with your reasoning but only to a point.  It is nice to borrow money for free but I believe it slightly hurts your credit score to carry a balance, and each time the introductory period runs out you need to apply for new credit (which can hurt your score) or possibly close older accounts to open new ones (which can also hurt your credit score)

Anthony M. · Answer

Thanks for all the feedback! I will definitely have to sit down and compare all of the cards that you guys listed to find out what one appeals to me the most.  There are so many things to consider before completing your first deal but I am trying to plan for all of the small things to cut down on any hassles in the future.

Best Credit Card for New Investor?

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