About Harlan

Just a dude living in Memphis, traveling, and working toward financial independence.

More articles by Harlan »

Flight Review: Brussels Airlines Business Class JFK-BRU

by Harlan 7 Comments

a seat in a plane

Also see:

Back in August 2016, I booked round-trip Business Class flights from JFK to Brussels on Brussels Airlines using ~37,000 Etihad miles (transferred 1:1 from Citi ThankYou points). That was an incredible value. Now it’s 44,000 Etihad miles each way, which is still a cheap price for Business Class to Europe. But not nearly as awesome, obvi.

I took the flights in May 2017 – a full 9 months after booking. It’s the farthest in advance I’ve ever booked a trip. So I was looking forward to it for a long time.

Brussels Airlines Business Class

Our bird to Brussels

As the date neared, I firmed up my intra-European itinerary. And booked positioning flights to and from New York.

Here’s a look at what Business Class on Brussels Airlines looks like.

Brussels Airlines Business Class seat

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So You Wanna Be an Airbnb Host? Part 4: Ongoing Maintenance

by Harlan 7 Comments

a city with tall buildings

After you get a few reviews and bookings, you’ll need to figure out how to keep the gravy train rolling. But, good news – the hard parts are over!

If you found a place, set it up, and listed it on Airbnb’s site, that is easily 90% of your whole Airbnb journey. The rest is just pruning and perfecting.

airbnb hosting

Your Airbnb calendar will be your lifeline

This is the part where you can be hands-off, travel, drop things off here and there. Basically, the whole reason you started this whole crazy thing: to have mostly passive income roll in.

Airbnb Hosting Index:

This series is meant for peeps who want to list an entire home separate from their primary residence on Airbnb.

Stock it up

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Is Marijuana Tourism a New American Trend?

by Harlan 24 Comments

a black shirt with a green leaf on it

I recently had the good fortune to visit Denver and Colorado Springs to hang out with some of the BoardingArea crew.

Marijuana Tourism

With Grant, Jeanne, Ben, and my awesome BA peeps

I also recently took a trip to Brussels, Amsterdam, and Prague (which I’m still trying to catch up writing about) but the key word in this sentence is… Amsterdam.

After that experience, I was looking forward to visiting some homegrown (American) dispensaries now that weed is legal in Colorado (and Washington, and Nevada).

In fact, there was one right across the street from the Sheraton Denver Downtown: Euflora. It got me thinking… would I go back to Denver just to smoke a bunch of weed?

As it turns out, the trail has already been thoroughly… blazed.

Would you fly to buy?

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So You Wanna Be an Airbnb Host? Part 3: Attracting Guests

by Harlan 4 Comments

a bed with pillows and a lamp on the side

Now that you’ve found a place and set it up, you’ll want to get it listed as quickly as possible so guests can book it. And by far the best way to attract bookings is so have a ton of photos.

airbnb hosting

You’ll want to have lots of crisp, clear photos to show your listing to guests

You’ll also want to hit a good mark with your pricing. But at first, I drop my prices as low as possible to get a few bookings.  And therefore a few positive reviews – they’re another huge opportunity to get more bookings.

Airbnb Hosting Index:

This series is meant for peeps who want to list an entire home separate from their primary residence on Airbnb.

The price is right

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Blue Business Plus Amex: New Card for Plastiq Payments?

by Harlan 6 Comments

a man holding up a credit card

UPDATE: One or more of these offers are no longer available. Click here to see the latest deals! And Plastiq’s fee is now 2.75%. 

I’ve come out of my slough of despair (kinda slash not really) following the news that Citi AT&T Access More cards won’t earn 3X on rent and mortgage payments starting July 22nd, 2017. And the Chase Sapphire Reserve trick stopped working, too – although I’ve heard you can still make payments with it for 1X (AKA it does NOT code as travel).

In the midst of all this, Amex came out with a brand new card: the Blue Business Plus (learn more here). And it holds some promise for payments with Plastiq. Of course, the numbers aren’t as good as they once were. But you can earn 2X on the first $50,000 spent per calendar year on the card.

Blue Business Plus Amex

Newest card

I got the card last week. And starting next month, it will be my go-to for Plastiq payments. Because I still want the points.

Here’s a look at how it works, by the numbers.

About the Blue Business Plus Amex

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So You Wanna Be an Airbnb Host? Part 2: Setting It Up

by Harlan 9 Comments

a living room with a couch and coffee table

Next comes the most expensive – and most fun – part of listing a home on Airbnb: setting it up!

You’re probably going to be in shock at how much it costs to get set up. But in my experience, you recoup all of the costs and get to pure profit in 8 to 10 weeks. I know of very few investments that provide a 100% return in such a short span of time.

airbnb hosting

It’s crazy how much “STUFF” people need

At the beginning, you’ll have seemingly innumerable things to set up and buy. But if you plan it right, you can have it ready in 3 to 4 days.

Airbnb Hosting Index:

This series is meant for peeps who want to list an entire home separate from their primary residence on Airbnb.

For best results, start with a theme

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Booking Glacier: I Used Points for Free Flights and Hotel Nights – and Still Paid $1,000

by Harlan 17 Comments

a man taking a selfie in front of a mountain

Later this week, I’m heading to Kalispell, Montana, to hike in Glacier National Park with my friend Angie. I can’t wait – it’s been 10 years since I’ve been in Montana!

glacier national park

Me in Montana – 2007

Though I’m excited, I found it admittedly difficult to cobble this trip together with points and miles – rural places are not kind to our hobby. So I paid about $1,000 out-of-pocket because I really wanted to go.

Here’s how I minimized costs as much as possible.

Flights to Glacier National Park with US Bank Altitude Reserve points

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[DEAL IS DONE] Tomorrow at Exactly 12:00 PM Eastern: $1,300 in Free Credit Card Spending, Plus $25

by Harlan 8 Comments

a silver coin with a price tag

Update: As of 5:32 pm Eastern time, PFS Buyers Club is not letting anyone else opt-in to the offer. DEAL IS DONE.

a screenshot of a website

That went fast

Congrats to those who got in on this! Signup for PFS Buyers Club so you don’t miss the next deal when it pops up!

Via my friend Meghan, you can purchase a Platinum coin from the US Mint tomorrow for $1,300 + $4.95 in shipping, then get paid $25 a week later. And yes, you can use a credit card.

The coins become available at exactly 12:00 pm Eastern time tomorrow, July 6th, 2017. Sometimes these deals go within minutes, so set a reminder for 11:50 am so you can be ready, if you’re interested. And be sure to opt-in (details below).

PFS buyers club

Buy this coin, get free points and cash

Then, PFS Buyers Club will send you a pre-paid label and pay you $1,330 for your effort – which yields a profit of $25. They send a check or PayPal payment within 7 business days of when you send them the coin.

Here are a couple of tips if you’re interested in this deal.

About PFS Buyers Club

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So You Wanna Be an Airbnb Host? Part 1: Finding the Right Place

by Harlan 15 Comments

a collage of images of a house

I’ve had Airbnb listings since 2014. In New York, I had 4 listings. And now that I’m in Dallas, I have 2 here.

I get asked a lot about how it all works. Peeps are interested because it’s a fairly low-maintenance source of extra income. I recently wrote I make an extra ~$18,000 a year from my Dallas listings.

While that doesn’t replace the income from full-time work, it sure is a nice boost as it rolls in throughout the year!

airbnb hosting

Finding an in-demand location is step numero uno

The first step is to find an attractive place in the right location: somewhere tourists want to stay. And as always with me, it comes down to the numbers.

Airbnb Hosting Index:

This series is meant for peeps who want to list an entire home separate from their primary residence on Airbnb.

Can you even do it?

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Must-Haves of Travel: Sesame Oil

by Harlan 10 Comments

a dog lying on the floor next to a bottle of body oil

Also see: 

When I was in Chicago in March, I wasn’t prepared for how cold it got. And, I’d forgotten my ultra-moisturizing coconut oil. (I also didn’t pack nearly enough layers, but that’s another story.)

In my quest for moisture, I headed to a drugstore for chap stick and… something. I didn’t want to get a huge container because my trip was only 5 days. I thought maybe they’d have a travel pack of coconut oil since it’s gotten so popular recently. No luck there, but they did have… sesame body oil? 

sesame oil

Curious little container

Once I got it back to The Drake, I popped open the little container and took a whiff. This stuff smells amazing. And I quickly learned a dab’ll do ya.

A quarter-sized amount in the palm is all you’ll need to cover yourself in the softest, sheerest moisture. Since that trip, I’ve added it to my arsenal as a supplement for coconut oil when I don’t want as much moisture.

Why pack sesame oil?

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Taking Stock: The 29 Credit Cards I Currently Have – and Why

by Harlan 19 Comments

a group of credit cards on a table

Update: One or more of the cards offers in this post are NO longer available. 

Time for a credit card inventory. Over the years, my collection of credit cards has grown. I now have 29 credit cards to my name.

(I did have 30, but closed my Citi ThankYou Premier last week. Because the Chase Sapphire Reserve is better for the same 3X categories. And Citi is changing the Prestige and AT&T Access More cards next month – which is causing me to significantly rethink my relationship with them.)

And, I’m paying annual fees on many of my cards. So I thought I’d put the complete list together to take stock of what I have – and what I’m getting in return. I’ll write a little snippet for each card, but will try to keep it brief. 29 cards is a lot!

Let’s jump right in.

Amex

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Update: My Credit Score Is Recovering After Disputes With All 3 Bureaus

by Harlan 10 Comments

a screenshot of a device

Also see: 

Well, it’s been nearly a year since a $6 charge from Dollar Shave Club on an Amex card plunged my credit score over 100 points.

At the time, my credit score was 803 – the first time I’d ever gone over 800. I know it doesn’t intrinsically “matter,” because a score over 750 is as good as it gets. But I did have some pride at earning an above-800 score.

So I was pretty horrified when one stupid error brought me down to ~700. All the work I’d done to build my credit was instantly erased. And, Amex was totally clueless, unhelpful, and actually prolonged the repair process by saying they’d corrected it on their end when in actuality they hadn’t done anything.

I dragged my feet on filing a dispute with the 3 major credit bureaus because I knew it would be a slog – and it was. No sugar-coating that ish.

 

credit score recovery

Only 13 points to go before I get to 800 again

But, as of last month, my score is now above 780 across the board!

It’s not over 800 yet – I doubt that will happen any time soon – but I am happy my score is recovering. Here’s how it went down.

The long, long dispute process

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