---
title: "Out of Office: A Q&A with Susan Novak | Points Guru"
description: Regency litigation counsel Susan Novak enjoys maximizing her credit cards to receive free flights around the world.
image: https://connect.regencycenters.com/hubfs/NovakAbroad.jpg
---

- [Home](https://www.regencycenters.com/)
- [Properties](https://connect.regencycenters.com/properties)
- [In Development](https://connect.regencycenters.com/in-development)
- [Regency](https://connect.regencycenters.com/regency)
- [Contact](https://connect.regencycenters.com/contact)
- [Investors](http://investors.regencycenters.com)
- [Tenants](https://connect.regencycenters.com/tenants)
- [Blog](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog)

- [Corporate Responsibility](https://www.regencycenters.com/corporate-responsibility)
- [Leadership](https://www.regencycenters.com/leadership)
- [Investors](http://investors.regencycenters.com)
- [Tenants](https://www.regencycenters.com/tenants)
- [Careers](https://www.regencycenters.com/regency/careers)

[![Regency Centers](https://www.regencycenters.com/ResourcePackages/Regency/assets/dist/images/regency-centers.svg)](https://www.regencycenters.com/) [![Search](https://www.regencycenters.com/ResourcePackages/Regency/assets/dist/images/icon-search.svg) Properties](https://www.regencycenters.com/properties)

![Menu](https://www.regencycenters.com/ResourcePackages/Regency/assets/dist/images/icon-menu.svg) Menu

- [Properties](https://www.regencycenters.com/properties)
- [In Development](https://www.regencycenters.com/in-development)
- [Regency](https://www.regencycenters.com/regency)
- [Contact](https://www.regencycenters.com/contact)

Search

- [Inside Regency](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/topic/inside-regency)
- [News Releases](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/topic/news-releases)
- [Retailer News](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/topic/retailer-news)

# Out of Office: A Q&A with Susan Novak | Points Guru

[Caron Streibich](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/author/caron-streibich)

[Inside Regency](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/topic/inside-regency) July 10, 2019

- [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share)

Susan Novak, Regency Centers' Litigation Counsel, has flown business class for free from Hong Kong to Croatia and seemingly everywhere in between. The savvy Novak has been maximizing credit card points for years by diligently maintaining a spreadsheet to keep track of all of her credit cards, frequent flyer and reward accounts — including account numbers, payment due dates, card anniversary dates, points conversion benefits and the earning and benefits for each account. Read on to discover more about Novak's cost-saving hobby.

**![Susan Novak with kangaroos while in Australia](https://connect.regencycenters.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Susan_Kangaroos.jpg?width=1000&name=Susan_Kangaroos.jpg)***Susan Novak — Sydney, Australia*

**RC:** How long have you been doing this, and how did you get into it?   
**SN:** I started in 2011 but I didn’t have a specific plan or goal in mind. I just wanted a return on my regular spending and so I began to accumulate points kind of passively. It wasn’t until 2014 that I took my first “points” trip; I was able to book all of the flights needed for a two month trip to China, Southeast Asia, and Australia in business class using points and about $200. After that, I was hooked.

**RC:** Explain a bit about the hobby itself and what it entails — is it the spreadsheet or also researching and utilizing cards in the best ways? How much time would you say you spend on it — is it more maintaining at this point or active time ‘doing’?   
**SN:** All of the above! I maintain a spreadsheet to keep track of the earning and benefits for each award account and credit card. The most difficult part is having to stop and think before you make any purchase to ensure that you’re using a card or account that will get you the most return (i.e. points back). How much time I spend depends on the situation; on a regular basis I spend a few hours per week monitoring the trends, new flight routes, etc. But once I have a trip in mind, all bets are off and I’m spending however much time it takes to figure out the best way to make my trip happen.

![Nolan Clark and Susan Novak in Croatia](https://connect.regencycenters.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Novak_Croatia.jpg?width=1000&name=Novak_Croatia.jpg)*Nolan Clark and Susan Novak in Dubrovnik, Croatia*

**RC:** How would you best describe what exactly you do to someone who’s never done or utilized points, credit cards in this way before?   
**SN:** Some people do “extreme couponing” and buy 20 jars of pasta sauce for $1. I do “extreme miles,” where I figure out ways to earn as many points and miles as possible on my regular spending, and then find ways to use those miles to travel as far as possible for as little as possible.

**RC:** Your husband, and now son, travel with you. Does your husband also do the points optimization?   
**SN:** My husband, Nolan, begrudgingly participates, although he is more hooked on the upper class tickets than I am, provided that I do all of the “research” and tracking. So he has his own cards, frequent flyer accounts, etc., but I handle the leg work and the planning of each trip. I have four “main" credit cards that I focus on.  

**RC:** Where should someone start who wants to get into earning points and traveling on points?   
**SN:** The first step is to pick a trip! It’s all downhill from there.

**RC:** Where are you off to next — presumably on points?  
**SN:** Romania and Budapest in December.

**FUN FACT**: “Points” trips to date include flying business class for free to Shanghai, Hong Kong, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Australia, Scotland, Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, France, Japan, Taiwan and Peru (plus Romania and Budapest in December).

*![Susan Novak in Scotland on a green grassy hill](https://connect.regencycenters.com/hs-fs/hubfs/NovakAbroad.jpg?width=1000&name=NovakAbroad.jpg)Susan Novak — Isle of Skye, Scotland*

##### Connect With Us

[Join Our Mailing List](https://www.regencycenters.com/connect-with-us/)  >

[Explore Our Markets](https://www.regencycenters.com/properties/our-markets)  >

[Find a Space For Your Place](https://www.regencycenters.com/properties)  >

##### Related Stories

[May 14 Regency Centers Earns 18th Consecutive First Coast Healthiest Companies Award](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/18th-first-coast-healthiest-companies-award) [Feb 05 Regency Centers Announces Lone Tree Village Development in Colorado](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/regency-centers-announces-lone-tree-village-a-king-soopers-anchored-retail-destination-serving-the-ridgegate-community) [Jan 29 Regency Centers Acquires Mount Sinai Shopping Center in Long Island](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/mount-sinai-shopping-center-in-long-island) [Jan 07 Out of Office: Jill Caffey's “Everesting” Climb of a Lifetime](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/out-of-office-jill-caffeys-climb-of-a-lifetime) [Nov 09 Out of Office: Hit the Slopes with Gary Fields and Eric Ryan](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/out-of-office-hit-the-slopes-with-gary-fields-and-eric-ryan) [Oct 27 Out of Office: Erika Omana Mentors through 'Minds Matter' Los Angeles](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/out-of-office-erika-omana) [Dec 12 Out of Office: Alyson Gannon Takes to the Stage for Local Production of “Grease”](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/out-of-office-alyson-gannon-takes-to-the-stage-for-local-production-of-grease) [Nov 21 Out of Office: Stephanie Brennan Answers Call of the Wild to Volunteer With Animals](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/out-of-office-stephanie-brennan-answers-the-call-of-the-wild-to-volunteer-with-animals) [Jan 07 Out of Office: Jill Caffey's “Everesting” Climb of a Lifetime](https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/out-of-office-jill-caffeys-climb-of-a-lifetime)

Subscribe

[![Regency Centers](https://www.regencycenters.com/ResourcePackages/Regency/assets/dist/images/regency-centers.svg)](https://connect.regencycenters.com/)

- [Careers](https://www.regencycenters.com/regency/careers)
- [Investors](http://investors.regencycenters.com/)
- [News](http://investors.regencycenters.com/news-releases)
- [Fresh Look](https://www.regencycenters.com/regency/fresh-look)
- [Tenants](https://www.regencycenters.com/tenants)
- [Contact](https://www.regencycenters.com/contact)

[Find a Property](https://www.regencycenters.com/properties) [Leasing Agent](https://www.regencycenters.com/contact) ![Reg Listed NYSE](https://connect.regencycenters.com/hubfs/blog2018/images/stock-ticker.svg)

[Regency Centers Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/RegencyCenters) [Regency Centers Twitter](https://twitter.com/RegencyCenters) [Regency Centers Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/regencycenters/) [Regency Centers LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/regency-centers/)

MEMBER  
**S&P 500**

Regency Centers is a preeminent national owner, operator, and developer of shopping centers located in suburban trade areas with compelling demographics.

©2026 Regency Centers [Terms of Service](https://www.regencycenters.com/terms-of-service) [Privacy Policy](https://www.regencycenters.com/privacy-policy)

 Cookie Settings

![Quantcast](https://pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-XHwFJLhjBpfmt.gif)

![](https://connect.regencycenters.com/hubfs/Susan_Kangaroos.jpg)

```json
{
  "@context" : "https://schema.org",
  "@type" : "BlogPosting",
  "author" : {
    "@type" : "Person",
    "name" : "Caron Streibich",
    "url" : "https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/author/caron-streibich"
  },
  "dateModified" : "2024-11-05T14:49:26.331Z",
  "datePublished" : "2019-07-10T18:14:17.000Z",
  "headline" : "Out of Office: A Q&A with Susan Novak | Points Guru",
  "image" : [ "https://connect.regencycenters.com/hubfs/NovakAbroad.jpg" ],
  "mainEntityOfPage" : {
    "@id" : "https://connect.regencycenters.com/blog/susan-novak-jacksonville-points-out-of-office",
    "@type" : "WebPage"
  },
  "publisher" : {
    "@type" : "Organization",
    "logo" : {
      "@type" : "ImageObject",
      "url" : "/hs/hsstatic/content_shared_assets/static-1.4081/img/vast.png"
    },
    "name" : "Regency Centers"
  }
}
```