February 1st, 2010
Review: Retirement Rewards Credit Cards
The next wave of rewards card programs is flooding the market, offering what’s termed “retirement rewards”. These rewards offer consumers the opportunity to turn points into cash to be invested in their retirement fund. The more familiar, traditional rewards programs of airline miles and cashback offers will have to move over for the innovative programs issuers have been rolling out to interest new customers and keep loyal ones: programs to donate to charities, pay off taxes, manage finances, and now, build up a nest egg.
As you are credit card shopping for retirement rewards, it’s crucial that you go beyond the following chart and make sure to read the fine print for each card and understand the fees and services before applying. Most of the following cards require no annual fee and some have no limit to how many points you can earn and redeem. Also, all cards, except for the NestEggz Visa, require that consumers have a retirement account at the participating financial company in order to redeem rewards for retirement dollars.
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Rewards Program
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APR
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Introductory Offer
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Earn two points for every $1 spent; for every 5,000 points earned (approx. $2,500 spent) adds $50 into Fidelity account
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13.99%
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0% APR on balance transfers for the first seven months
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NestEggz Loyalty Rewards Credit Card
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Offers 1% rebate on every purchase, deposited to retirement account of your choice; use card at participating NestEggz merchant and you’ll get additional 1-26% in NestEggz Bucks (equal to $1)
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9.9%
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NA
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Earn 1 Ameriprise reward point for every dollar spent; 1% cash back when you redeem points into qualifying Ameriprise financial account
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13.24%
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Earn double Ameriprise Rewards points for the first 60 days your account is opened.
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Offers 1 point for every dollar in net retail purchases; earn 2x to 4x bonus points by shopping at select merchants; redeem rewards points for cash to deposit to Edward Jones retirement account
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12.99%
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0% APR on balance transfers for the first twelve months
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If using your credit card rewards to invest in your retirement makes more sense to you than getting airline or hotel upgrades, it’s a good idea to check one of these cards out. Choose a card that works for you and let your everyday spending help you earn and save more towards your retirement goals.
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I love my Fidelity retirement rewards card. I was setting up a Roth IRA with Fidelity anyway, and was presented with the option of getting the card. I was previously using a Chase rewards card for every day purchases, but now use this card everywhere they take Amex. I generally get around $50 a month added to my IRA, just for doing what I would have done anyway. Sweet!
I have this card and would like to add one important point: Your only options for contacting their customer service department are snail mail and phone (with a long wait time). It’s the first card I’ve ever encountered that doesn’t have a “contact us” form on their website or a customer service email address. And since their website doesn’t have a lot of functionality, you can expect to spend half an hour or more on hold for a simple change like opting out of mail solicitations. I wouldn’t have gotten this card if I had known how stressful it would be to contact them.