24,000 + 8,000 (update: or 16,000) points for no-fee Choice credit card

I would call Choice. I had a similar problem once, and they quickly resolved it.

It's been almost one year since I got the card. Do I have to complete a stay before the one year anniversary to be eligible for the additional 16,000 points? Or it doesn't matter?

Terms and conditions don't say anything about a time limit, but what are you waiting for?

is this card churnable?

I think no one knows the answer to this question yet. Sadly, I have not followed up on my own suggestion in post 34 of this thread, http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/18237045-post34.html, regarding applying for the card--I've had other fish to fry and that won't change soon as I'll apply for a Barclays US card to add to my stash before the completion of the merger with AA.

My post sets out my thinking why the card should be churnable, but I'd note that unlike the US card that Barclays handles, the Choice card has no annual fee. Hard to make the analogy to the Citi Hilton card, another hotel card with no annual fee, since there's no way to know whether Barclays will adopt such a generous policy with a no-fee card. And, given the passage of time (my first application was in August/September 2011), any data point I might add now would only prove that the card was "slowly" churnable.

For what it's worth, I completed my first stay 13 months after I got the card and I had no problems with the additional 16,000 points posting.

Took a chance on applying and alas, no cigar. Have 5 hard pulls from the last 3 months (none before that for a year) including one with Barclay. I knew chances were low on approval given other reports, but was quite interested in this card so took the chance. Called reconsideration and talked to a nice rep and her manager, gave them reasons for my recent other apps (wanted cards without annual fee, wanted airline CCs because I flew a lot, etc), but they insisted the combination of short history with them (just got my first card with them this month) AND multiple inquiries made it unapprovable. Unfortunately, it also resulted in a hard pull, even though my previous app with them was within 30 days.

Should you be in similar situation and thinking of applying, it's probably best to resist and wait till you build ~6 months of history with them.

Just curious - how long after the statement (in which you purchased this stay) closed did the points post? I just completed my first stay after ~18 months of cardmembership in order to get the 16k bonus points, and I'm wondering how long I'll have to wait after my statement closing date to get the bonus points.

I tried applying one week ago using the link in the OP (it does come up with the T&C promising the more favorable bonus). Upon completion of the application, the instant decision function did not respond favorably (but I've never had a CC give me instant acceptance despite 40 years of unblemished credit history, credit score within 5 points of the max, plenty of salary income, etc).

I used the info provided to check my status the next day; it responded my app had been rejected and I would have to wait for a reason via US mail. 7 days later the reason arrived: the promo I had applied for had expired and was therefore not valid. It invited me to apply again using some current link.

I then re-applied using the current link on the Choice website - this time the instant decision function responded that my new app had been rejected because I had already applied within 30 days (ie my rejected app attempt of 1 week ago).

Just thought I would let folks know ...

Thanks for sharing your experience. I have updated post # 1 accordingly. Perhaps this deal is finally dead, though there is always the possibility that it will get reincarnated again. Hard to know for sure.

The 32,000 offer is still alive.
http://www.choicehotels.com/en/hotelvisacreditcard

Thanks. I have updated post # 1.
Instead of getting 24,000 points after first purchase and 8,000 points after first paid stay with the card, you now receive 8,000 points after first purchase and 24,000 points after first paid stay.
So, yes, still a 32,000 point offer with a much stronger incentive to use your card for a paid stay at a Choice hotel.

Just got the 40,000 points email, and am wondering if it is worth it...Hmmm...

Visa Signature - 24K points with $1K spending in 3 months and 16K points after 1st paid stay plus Elite Gold Status with NO Annual Fee.

If you ever stay at any Choice hotels, it's a good card to have.

No annual fee is always good. Gold status will provide an earnings bonus plus an expanded booking window. Which can be great if certain European properties keep offering low-level award opportunities. Like, five nights worth with this card. So long as you understand that Choice has few "aspirational" properties and keep your expectations realistic, this can be a good program, especially because earnings can be done relatively easily with recurrent 8K points promotions that let you earn another European night for two cheap stays in the US.

It's a Barclays card, which means that so long as you're not looking at another of their cards, such as the US card or the Arrival card, in the short-term future, you're avoiding another Citi, Chase, or Amex hit.

I've got two Barclays cards. This is one of them. The 40K offer is historically high and not currently available through any public channel.

Hope this information helps.