So, lemme see if I got this right:
The initial $4000 spending needed is the total for 3 months, right? Around $1400 a month?
And the $1500 bonus you get is only usable for travel services - flight, rental cars, hotels, etc? Is there a time limit to using that?
And that $300 is over-and-above the $1500, except that you get it as credit afterwards, at the end of year?
You have 3 months, from the date you get approved, to spend $4k, not including the annual fee that will be charged first statement.
You get 100k Ultimate Rewards points for accomplishing this. You can redeem these in multiple ways, for example:
1) Travel (Flights/hotels/rental cars etc.) through Ultimate rewards portal where they're worth 1.5x, so 100k points is worth $1,500 travel value.
2) Transfer them at 1:1 to UR partners, such as Southwest where they are worth like 1.5 pts/dollar +. So you can book say a $200 flight for 10k points directly through Southwest Rapid Rewards.
3) Redeem your points for gift cards through Ultimate Rewards. You could redeem your 100k points for ten $100 Amazon gift cards for instance.
The $300 travel credit is a separate benefit that you'll continue to get once each
calendar year with this card. Basically if you spend $300 on anything that registers as travel (Flights/rental cars/hotels/public transportation etc.), you'll be reimbursed $300. So you can get this $300 reimbursement now, and again 1/1/2018.
I don't get it...don't I actually have to hand you $4,450 for you to give me $1,600?
No, cause you spend $4k on whatever the hell you choose. Bills, insurance, groceries etc. Your normal daily shit, just make sure you spend at least $4k. You just incur a $450 fee for the privilege of using this card, then you're given what amounts to $1,600 in points and reimbursements.