Target Redbird?

[Panache]

Anyone have experiences with the new Target Red Prepaid? I currently have Serve, and like to be able to load $1000/month online from the comfort of home. To top it off, I get a few gift cards from Simon/Grocery store/etc every so often to bring up the MS to about $2-3 K/month and load to Serve. I am fortunate that the Walmart in my town has a working Kiosk so I don't have to interact with cashiers or stand in line (that's the plus). But, the 1% fees for GCs, do add up.

I'm thinking of starting an AOR this month with 3-4 new cards (Citi AA, US Air and Club Carlson, maybe Barclaycard Arrival or CSP?) and that will mean clearing more spending. The Target Red card seems like an ideal way but I hear of people getting 1) Fraud alerts when using redcard to load lots of money and 2) Rumors about loads going soon to cash only, which will mean going back to Serve. Also, the lines at cash registers at my Target are always long it seems (I guess I'd have to get in the habit of going in the mornings and definitely not on the weekend), so doing several trips a month to spread out the transactions into smaller chunks sounds like a pain.

What would fellow more experienced MSers recommend?

TY in advance!

-peter

 

[wasser]

You might want to ask to have this thread moved to http://saverocity.com/forum/threads/flame-free-noob-thread-ask-non-ms-questions-here.209/page-7
You will need advice on your AOR. Club Carlson is a difficult card to get and you might want to apply for it first, and by itself.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/credit-card-programs/1412784-us-bank-club-carlson-signature-visa-card-85k-sign-up-40k-yr-upon-renewal-165.html
Barclay's Arrival can also be hard to get if you have a number of credit inquiries or other Barclay cards.

 

[Panache]

Oops, thought these questions were verboten on the non-ms thread Sorry.

Thanks much for the advice. I currently just have 1 recent credit card app (Chase United in August), and just another CC from a credit union that I've had for years. I'd rather get the AA and US air card over the Carlson one. Do I risk not getting approved for the US Air one if I apply for the Carlson one first?

Thanks!

 

[SanSan]

I'm thinking of trying for this Red Card, too. It actually is available in California, although CA was not on the original list of states.

As far as your AOR goes, I'd get the US Air card first, then Club Carlson, then the rest of them. The US Air card is on it's way out, so if you miss your chance, you won't get another. If you get declined for the CC card, you might reevaluate continuing on with the AOR, or laying low for another few months to try again. That said, I think your chances are very good, because you are still very early in the credit card game and, as such, approvals seem to be simpler. Is your credit score ok? You can gain points by paying off all your credit cards to zero before the statements post, I find that to raise my score nicely (839 instead of

 

[Panache]

I ended up getting all 3 (US Air with the 10 K bonus after the 1st year, Citi AA and Carlson), my FICO jumped to 815. Quite nice.

My wife got Redbird cards for both of us when she went to Richmond, VA a week ago. But one mistake she did was to put her SSN when requested on the keypad each transaction. Then, upon arriving at home, one card did not register. A call to AmEx customer support required to fax them the receipts, ID, copy of the card and packaging. Now (after 2 day wait) the card looks like it should activate (I can get to the sign-up screen, but need to close out Serve first).

So, advice for those buying multiple Redbirds: Enter a different SSN for each card you buy.

 

[Matt]

Thread locked as conversation continued in Level 2.