👋 Hi Reader,

Hope your weekend is off to a great start! Here are some of my favorites from the past week:

• 💵 How much $$$ do you really need to retire?
• 🚨 Last chance for a massive 120k welcome bonus
• 👑 Free year of VIP hotel status
• 💸 $680 bank bonus + 1% match on 401(k) rollovers!
• 🏨 2 promotions for bonus hotel points
• 🚖 $75 Uber credit (possibly for free)

As always, I'd really appreciate you forwarding this to anyone who might enjoy it (and if that's you, make sure to subscribe here).

Thanks so much in advance!

-Chris

💵 How Much $ You Need to Retire Early

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After reading Karsten Jeske's Safe Withdrawal Rate Series, I knew he'd be the perfect guest to talk about strategies for financial independence and early retirement. We discuss sequence of return risk, market risks, the 4% rule, taxes, annuities, inflation protection, portfolio allocation, and even the psychological aspects of retirement planning.

🛫 Travel, Points & Miles

🚨 Last Call on a Big 120k Point Welcome Bonus

Last month I shared that this business card from a popular bank had a best-ever welcome offer of 120k bonus points after you spend $8k in 3 months and it's been confirmed that it will only be available until through 9am EST on 9/5/24. It’s one of the best opportunities to earn transferrable points that could be worth $1,500 or more. And if you think you’re not eligible for a business card, this article might change your mind :)

🏨 Hilton Q3 Promo: 2,500 Bonus Points Per Stay

Hilton’s Q3 Promo is out and pretty easy. For stays completed between 9/3/24 and 12/31/24 at any Hilton hotel/resort, you earn 2,500 Bonus Points as long as you register in advance here.

🚗 Earn a Quick 1,000 Marriott Points with Uber

Marriott Bonvoy members can now earn an easy 1,000 bonus points by linking their Uber account and completing their first ride by 9/30/24. Unfortunately, Uber Eats orders doesn’t qualify for this promo.

In other Marriott news, they’ve partnered with Sonder, adding 100+ apartment-style properties where Bonvoy members can now earn and redeem points.

👑 Free Radisson Rewards VIP Status

Radisson Rewards has an offer for free upgrade to their top VIP tier, which includes perks like room upgrades, breakfast for two, lounge access, and early/late checkout. The bad news is that I tried every tactic mentioned in the post above and couldn't get it to work. The good news is that I managed to figure out my own method by using the promo code and appending it to another sign up URL, which I put together for you here. I expect they'll turn this way off too, so act fast.

🛫 JetBlue Mosaic Elite Status Match

JetBlue has relaunched a status match program for elites from American, Alaska, Delta, and United, offering broader eligibility but with stricter requirements. The match is only up to Mosaic 2, with the opportunity to earn up to Mosaic 3 by earning tiles (JetBlue's elite status-qualifying units). If you time you match right, you could potentially secure status for the current and following years.

🤝 Update: Alaska and Hawaiian Merger

Looks like the Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines merger is moving forward and this article talks about what’s next for Alaska Mileage Plan. If you've been looking for a way to get some more Alaska Miles, this article covers the risks of transferring points to Hawaiian (with a 20% transfer bonus through 8/31) expecting they'll become Alaska Miles (which was recently confirmed that they will transfer 1:1 here).

🤑 Latest Deals

🎯 $50 off $50 at Target

If you don't already have a Target Circle™ Card, they're currently offering new cardholders $50 off $50 when you get approved. A $50 bonus wouldn't usually excite me, but this offer works with the Debit Card version of the card, which has no impact on your credit. It also offers 5% off Target, free 2-day shipping and some other benefits.

🚖 $75 Uber Credit with CLEAR Enrollment

Through 9/3/24, you can get a $75 Uber voucher (also good on Uber Eats) with any new CLEAR Plus membership when you enroll at this link with the code BETTERTRAVEL75. Membership is $199/yr, but if you've been considering joining or have an Amex card that reimburses the fees (like The Platinum Card® from American Express or The Business Platinum Card® from American Express), it might be a good time to sign up. I have 3 cards with a CLEAR credit and I've only used two, so I'm actually considering offering to pay for a family member's membership if they give me the Uber credit. Win-win for both of us :)

💸 Two SoFi Offers Expiring Soon!

SoFi still has two expiring deals that can help you earn some extra $$:

1. Up to $680 Bank Bonus (through 8/30/24): When you open a SoFi Checking and Savings account and receive a qualifying direct deposit within 30 days, you can earn a bonus of up to $300. Plus, if you sign up for SoFi through Rakuten and set up a direct deposit of $500+, you can earn an additional $350 bonus. Finally, if you use this link to get an additional $30 when you sign up for a new Rakuten account.
2. 1% Unlimited 401(k) Rollover Match (through 9/15/24): SoFi has extended their 1% unlimited match offer on 401(k) accounts rolled over into a SoFi IRA (Traditional or Roth).

🕵️ Great Finds

‎🩺 Peter Attia: Longevity 101

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If you’re interested in learning more about longevity, this episode put together a really thorough introduction to the subject and covered CVD, cancer, neurodegenerative disease, nutrition, exercise, sleep, and more! It's also available as a podcast episode here and if you're a premium member of the podcast you also get their comprehensive show notes.

💰 New Solo 401(k) Features at Carry

Since we started running our own business, we opened a Solo 401(k) at Carry and consolidated all our old 401(k)s into it as well. It's been a fantastic experience, but they just launched 3 more features I'm super excited about:

• Alternative investments lets you invest in startups, real estate, and more from your account.
• Automated "mega backdoor roth" to simplify the process of fully maxing out your Solo 401(k) by automatically converting your after-tax contributions to Roth
• Payroll integrations to fully automate contributions to your Solo 401k from payroll providers like Gusto (what we use)

P.S. If you want to learn more about how to save on taxes, check out ep #147 with Carry’s co-founder Ankur Nagpal. During that episode, he offered a deal for new customers that I think still works here.

💬 Parting Thoughts

As always, thanks so much for reading - I hope you enjoyed it!

Please feel free to reply to this email with any thoughts, feedback or even if you just want to say hi! :)

Chris