Update: This offer is no longer available. Check out the Chase Credit Cards page to view Chase cards that are currently available.
I mentioned in a January blog post that the 50,000 point sign-up bonus would likely get the axe before the 2nd quarter of 2012. Well, it was axed as I expected, but the card offer that took it's place is surprisingly not as bad as I originally thought it would be.The new Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is now offering a sign-up bonus of 40,000 points (instead of the previous 50,000) after you spend $3,000 during the first three months.
The other major difference to note is instead of earning a 25 percent discount off travel when booking rewards through Chase's online portal, you'll only get 20 percent off hotel stays, airfare, car rentals and cruises with the new card. That means your 40,000 point bonus could be worth $500 in free travel. The previous offer was basically giving away $625 in travel, which was well above average for a travel rewards credit card sign-up bonus, so this new offer brings the bonus a bit back in line with some of the other competing offers out there.
I was initially afraid that Chase might knock their sign-up bonus for this card back to 25,000 or even 10,000 or so for awhile, so I'm pleased to see that the Chase Sapphire Preferred still remains a really great option for anyone with good credit who is on the hunt to rack up some fast points for free travel this summer. Check out our full review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card for all the details and consider applying for yours today.
