BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card

BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card Review

The BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card from Commerce Bank is an exclusive credit card only available to members of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis. This local professional association is for legal professionals who work in the Greater St. Louis, Missouri area.

You must present proof of your membership in this organization in order to apply for this credit card. If you meet the qualifications, you get access to some great perks.

This credit card features a flat interest rate that is several percentage points lower than the national average. Additionally, new cardholders can take advantage of a very low introductory APR. This introductory offer is available for six months from the date of opening an account. What’s more, the same low promotional APR applies to both purchases and balance transfers.

As a rewards card, the BAMSL Visa® earns cardholders cash back on all their purchases. You earn more for purchase at fast food restaurants and coffee shops. Purchases at gas stations and restaurants will earn you slightly less cash back rewards. All other purchases will earn you 1% cash back.

There is no limit to how much cash back you can earn with this card. And what’s great about this Commerce Bank Visa Signature® is that there is no annual fee.

Earning Cash Back

The BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card is a cash back rewards card. As such, this card earns you a percentage of your purchases as cash back.

Every time you use your Visa Signature® at a fast food restaurant or coffee shop, you’ll earn 3% cash back. This is a great personalized feature for busy legal professionals who are always on the move. You can earn rewards when you pick up that morning coffee before that brief or when picking up lunch for your team.

As well, cardholders earn 3% cash back when they use ridesharing services, like Lyft or Uber. This feature is almost tailor-made for legal professionals. Many courthouses are located in dense urban centers, and parking can be very expensive…if you can even find it. This feature can be a lifesaver for many legal professionals.

What’s more, cardholders also earn 2% cash back on restaurant and gas purchases. Now, you must make the purchase at a business that is categorized as a restaurant in order to earn these rewards. Similarly, you must purchase gas at a service station or automated fuel pump in order to earn 2% cash back.

Many gas stations are categorized as these types of businesses. However, many grocery stores and wholesale clubs are now offering this service. These may not have the same merchant category. Purchases at these pumps may not earn you 2% cash back.

Even if you don’t earn 2% cash back, you won’t come away empty handed. That’s because all other purchases will earn you 1% cash back. Additionally, there is no rewards cap with this card. That means you can earn as much cash back as you want.

Redeeming Your Rewards

The BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card may advertise that it’s a cash back credit card. However, don’t let this limit your redemption options. You can actually redeem your rewards for items in the rewards catalog in addition to cash back.

You may be thinking, “I don’t get the cash back automatically?” The answer is that most cash back cards don’t award you cash as soon as you spend. Instead, you earn credits that you can then opt to redeem for cash back. The good thing about this card, though, is that you earn these credits on a daily basis. Many rewards cards have you wait until the end of a billing cycle.

The BAMSL Visa Signature® gives you these credits in the form of points. In effect, 3% cash back is like earning three points for every dollar you spend. When you opt to redeem your points for cash back, you will receive a statement credit.

The minimum amount of points you can redeem for a statement credit is 5,000. You would have to spend over $1,600 on coffee or fast food in order to earn this amount. Once you redeem your points, a credit should be posted to your account within two business days.

This credit card also allows you to redeem your points for merchandise, gift cards, travel, and fuel discounts. You can log into Commerce Bank’s Rewards website to view the available items. However, you cannot see how many points they cost until you actually sign up for this credit card. As such, there is no way of really knowing what your points are worth.

Low Intro APR on Purchases

Another great feature of the BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card is its introductory APR promotion. When you sign up for this card, you have 6 months of reduced interest on all your purchases.

The promotional APR is a small fraction of the regular interest rate. With this promotion, you can finance a large purchase without having to pay much extra. This can be a great boon for cardholders who need to furnish a home or office. As well, you can pay for a large vacation with this feature.

Now, you should know that the six-month promotional period begins on the date that you sign up. As soon as Commerce Bank approves you for the BAMSL Visa® Card, the clock begins ticking. As such, you should decide on what you need or want to purchase before you apply for this credit card. That way you’ll maximize the time you have to pay off your purchases.

While, the reduced APR is a nice feature, it’s not really the best that a credit card can offer a consumer. Many other credit cards offer cardholders a 0% introductory APR for 12 months. This can save you even more money and give you more time to pay off your balance.

However, few credit cards offer interest rates as low as the BAMSL card. There’s always a trade-off when it comes to credit card benefits.

Low Intro APR on Balance Transfers

The BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card offers a similar introductory offer on balance transfers, too. For six months from the date of signing up for this card, you can also take advantage of a reduced APR when you transfer a balance.

However, this deal isn’t as big of a deal as the purchase APR promotion. For starters, six months isn’t a lot of time to pay off a significant credit card balance without causing added financial strain. Additionally, this card charges a relatively high fee for balance transfers compared to many competitors’ credit cards.

As such, this may not be the best credit card for you if you are looking to cancel out a large balance on a high-interest credit card. If anything, this card can help you reduce the balance on another card if you transfer over a small portion of that debt. It really depends on how much you can afford to pay each month for six months.

Should You Apply for the BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card

Before you run out to apply for this card, you should remember that this credit card is only available to BAMSL members who are in good standing. You will need to present proof of your membership upon applying.

If you meet these application requirements, then the BAMSL Visa Signature® Rewards Card may be a great addition to your wallet. The deciding factor in choosing a credit card often comes down to the APR. And this card has a competitive one. What’s great is that Commerce Bank offers the same low APR to all applicants.

This credit card features some of the more unique rewards spending categories in the industry. That being said, the spending categories should align with how you regularly spend in order for you to get the most value from this card. If you aren’t a coffee drinker and don’t eat at fast food restaurants, you shouldn’t change your spending habits to earn points with this card.

If you’ve read through the earning details of this card and thought, “this is my life right here,” then this might be a good financial companion for the long run.

Now, if you’re specifically looking for APR promotions, however, there might be better 0% APR cards out there. As well, the balance transfer feature on this card isn’t the most attractive out there. There are many better balance transfer credit cards in the market.