My First App O Rama

Now that I’ve been following the points and miles train for three years I’m feeling pretty confident about how it all works.  I’ve watched many people pull off these ‘crazy’ App O Rama’s where they apply for multiple credit cards in one day.

I decided to make the plunge on Friday and complete my very first App O Rama.  I zeroed in on five sweet cards that were going to produce 285,000 miles.  That basically amounts to five round trip tickets in the USA and roughly 15 category 2 night hotels.  Here is the summary of my first big one.

Card	Bank	Credit Agency	Bonus	Spending Req	Time Limits	Fee
The US Airways Premier World MasterCard®	Barclaycard	TransUn	40k	$1	None	$89*
Gold Delta	Amex	Experian	30k	$1000	3 Mo	$95*
American Citi Card	Citi	Experian	50k	$3,000	4 Mo	$85*
Club Carlson Card	US Bank	Experian	85k	$2,500	3 Mo	$75
Priority Club Card	Chase	Experian	80k	$1,000	3 Mo	$49*
Totals			285k	7,001

The US Airways card that I got is no longer available.  The one listed above is our affiliate link (that we get paid a commission on) and has an $89 annual fee, but is still the best one I could find available.

As you can see, I’m planning on scoring a bonus of 285k points and miles over the course of the next three months.  One annual fee comes the first year, and all the others are waived for the first year.

Why would anyone do an App O Rama?

The whole idea behind an App O Rama is timing.  Applying for multiple cards in one day prevents each of the issuers to realize that others have approved you on the same day.  This would prevent them from declining you because of the reason “Too many inquiries.”

For this reason it is really important that you get each of the cards approved on the day in which you apply.  If they wait a couple of days, then they’ll see the other inquiries and potentially turn you down.

My App O Rama Results

How long does an App O Rama take?

You better budget about two hours for your App O Rama.  Filling out all of the applications can take some time, but the larger issue is taking the time to be sure that you’re approved.  As you can see I had to make a few calls to the reconsideration lines to make sure that all of the cards were approved on the same day.

The two hours should give you enough time to submit your App O Rama applications and call the reconsideration lines.  For me it was almost a thrill.  My blood pressure definitely went up a few ticks during the process as I anticipated the approvals from each of the companies.  Upon arrival at my house I told my wife that I had just applied for five credit cards.  Her response, “Wow.  That sounds great!”

Most people’s spouses would probably strangle their partner, but my wife has been along for the ride long enough that it isn’t a big deal at this point.  She doesn’t study this stuff like I do, but she goes along with my judgement (and the free trips).

Why and how to get approved for your applications

I was nervous because of my recent mortgage and a business credit card that I had gotten in November that they might not be excited about me.  I called Barclaycard first and found out that their reconsideration line was closed!  Oh no.  Fortunately about an hour later I received an email and they told me that I had been approved for the card.  I called and got an automated system that told me that I’d be getting my 40,000 Dividend Miles with the first purchase.  Great Success!

I then moved to the Priority Club card with Chase.  The lady who answered the phone was very friendly, but told me that I’d had quite a bit of activity lately (mortgage, business card, and a few other inquiries).  She asked if I would be willing to wait the normal 5-7 business days to get approved for the cards.  I politely asked if she could just review the information and make a decision today.  She put me on hold and came back with an approval!  Great Success.

My final call was to Citibank for the American Airlines card.  After verifying my information she told me that my address was not being verified in the system.  I explained that she might use my business address instead and see if it would verify better than my home address.  She put me on hold and came back with an approval after she was able to verify my business address.

Who should NOT do an App O Rama?

People with bad credit or no credit should avoid the App O Rama phase until they’ve built up an established credit.  I’ve got 8 years of credit and I’ve never missed a payment.  My score was a 760 upon starting this thing, and I’ll let you know as it goes forward if it is affected by the applications.

Who should do an App O Rama?

If you’re one of those people like me who have a great score, long credit history, and you love to travel, then this might be something you should try.  Building up over 200,000 miles in one whack is definitely a way to get cracking on planning your next trip.

This process isn’t going to last forever, and you’ve already missed too many deals if you haven’t been participating in it yet.  If you feel more comfortable starting with one credit card, do that.  At least get started with something.  Once the points start rolling in and your free trips begin, then you’ll know you’ve hit the jackpot.