Advice needed!
 

Firstly, forgive me if I'm posting this in the wrong forum, admins please feel free to move it. I figure since this is the Air Canada section it should be relevant.

I'm very new to all of this, getting great deals on flights and such. I've been reading through different blogs and websites including the forums here and have been trying to acquire as much knowledge as possible. I've come to the conclusion that a lot of the advice/deals are for Americans, and as a Canadian it's making it hard for me to find out where to start.

What are the best credit cards to apply for as a Canadian?
What is the best company to divert points/miles to as a Canadian?

Does anyone know of a bank of knowledge or a specific blog for Canadian type deals, or is anyone here willing to offer my some advice?

I also know that applying for and cancelling credit cards hurts hurts my credit score in the short term, is starting all of this now a good idea if I foresee having a mortgage in the next one to two years, or could it potentially increase my credit score within that time frame by having more than just one line of credit?

Thank you for any and all help!

It all depends on what you use your card for and what you intend to do with your rewards. If you are unsure, the Cap1 cashback is probably your best bet for now.

Your concerns are the focus of part of the site redflagdeals.com. Also, the Toronto Star has a section on its site (thestar.com) called "Moneyville" where these types of issues are considered.

I'll look into both sites, thanks for the tips.

As far as what I use my credit card for...

I currently have one credit card (visa gold I believe) which I've had now for the last five years and is on a joint account with my parents, or at least it used to be. I use this credit card for any and all of my purchases, and I often try to use my credit card as opposed to paying cash when possible. I receive one point for every two dollars spent, which isn't great, but I have very few expenses and the card has no annual fee.

I've read that the cards that offer points transferable into miles programs have the best signup bonuses so I'd be looking into slowly acquiring a few of those purely for the signup bonuses and cancelling them before the year would be up to avoid any yearly fees. Maybe I should look into getting a new primary card as well, but I wouldn't cancel my old one not to destroy my credit history.