Originally Posted by
ejs621
I completely disagree with your assessment. Other than the time it takes to apply for a hotel affinity credit card, how long does it take to pull out a Hilton Amex card out of your wallet when your checking into Hilton, a Marriott Visa when your checking into a Marriott, etc...etc. Some hotel credit cards give elite status with the card (Hilton Surpass Amex). That means even more additional points per stay, let alone the sign up bonuses. Almost all Hotel credit cards grant sign up bonuses with your first purchase on the card. That means any purchase, it doesn't have to be hotel stay related.
That's right - then add a little bit of time to actually find the best sign-up offer for the card you need, a little bit of time to keep track of due dates and payments on these credit cards, a little bit of time for investigating of what to do if you're not approved (reconsideration calls, letters etc.). Add to that offsetting factor of annual fees (unless you're willing to spend time cancelling it, choosing a new one, applying for it, getting through the hoops of possible rejection - than you're such deep in the game that regular monitoring of you credit report becomes a must).
And a little bit later when the OP decides to buy a house - oops - mortgage companies will not give him the best rate. Now he will have a pay extra $100s a month just for pleasure of knowing he's getting points valued at let's say 4 cents per $1 spend instead of following his original suggestion of just getting 2% cashback everywhere he uses a credit card.
My message was not that this miles game is all useless and senseless, but that this hobby makes sense if you work 8-5 and earn 5 digits and have a house and a car (and don't plan to get more of these), but that is not OP's case. And his spare time will have a very definite value for him