We have a new round of updates that I’m excited to share with you, including authorized user tracking and CardGenie upgrades. These have all come directly from user feedback. It’s really fun to get your thoughts and ideas on how to improve Travel Freely. We’re in this free travel thing together.
Here’s the rundown on the latest round of updates:
CardGenie improvements
Recently we updated the public CardGenie that lists all the best offers, and the custom CardGenie in your login portal. We’ve added the ability to search for specific cards, and click to “show more” to see more cards on the same page.
Authorized Users can now be tracked
Previously, I did not include a place for Authorized Users (AU) on our dashboard because I wanted to stay away from the confusion regarding the 5/24 rule. I get emails every week telling me that AU cards count towards 5/24, but it’s NOT true. The problem is that Chase’s computer system will count an authorized user card as a primary account during their first, automated application stage. So authorized user cards can cause denials.
However, you can call and talk to an application specialist and they will remove that account when doing a manual review. Sometimes you’ll get customer service reps who try to tell you that authorized user cards do count towards your total accounts, but the key is either to say “No I am not financially responsible for that account”, or to hang up and get another rep on the phone.
Because it’s such a hassle, I’ve recommended that people don’t get authorized user cards if they are wanting smooth applications with Chase, but obviously it’s good to have one if you need two cards to hit a spending bonus.
Now, when you add or edit a card, there’s a place to note that you have an authorized user on this account. Here’s a short video showing how it works…
Update for Active Service Military
Thanks to some conversations with Spencer at MilitaryMoneyManual.com (if you or your spouse is in the military, you have to check out his site), I realized that we needed to update Travel Freely to be more friendly for these great rules for active military. So, we added a toggle in settings where you can note that you or your spouse are active military, and we’ll reduce those Chase personal annual fees and Amex personal and business card annual fees to $0! Check out Spencer’s site for all the tips and tricks.
Turning Business On/Off for Each User
In Settings, you can now specify which user has a business. Previously, it forced both users to have a business profile and that meant business card recommendations in the CardGenie for users who didn’t have a business.
Minor Updates
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- Annual Fee Notification Box – We added the names, amount, and annual fee date of cards to the Annual Fee notification box. Hopefully, this helps have that extra info right in front of you.
- Functionality for Active and Inactive View – We also updated when you go into your Inactive View and make any changes. Now, once you finish editing a card, it will send you back to the Inactive View instead of default to the Active View. Another update thanks to a TF user!
