For what they offer, are the Amex charge card AF justified?

[chnceit]

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@navigatethis12 wrote:

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@chnceit wrote:

revolvers 3Xs CLI at 61 days never heard of with other lenders 

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The thing with American Express is that you can only get an increase of up to three times the current limit. On a 1000 card that is only 3000, while with other lenders you can ask for any amount you want and most will counter with something, but they do not restrict you to just three times the limit. Many lenders let you request an increase whenever you want, not making you wait sixty-one days from opening the account. Their six month rule per cardholder is also rubbish in my opinion. With General Electric I went from 1000 - 10000 in one month. This was through normal customer service channels, not the analyst number. With American Express that would have taken over one year. This is on a card that can be used anywhere, not just Dillards.

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GE is one lender that is currently generous with CLI's, but does not offer low APR which AMEX does. 

Also AMEX is considered as conservative and GE not so.....

[ryanbush]

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@chnceit wrote:

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@navigatethis12 wrote:

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@chnceit wrote:

revolvers 3Xs CLI at 61 days never heard of with other lenders 

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The thing with American Express is that you can only get an increase of up to three times the current limit. On a 1000 card that is only 3000, while with other lenders you can ask for any amount you want and most will counter with something, but they do not restrict you to just three times the limit. Many lenders let you request an increase whenever you want, not making you wait sixty-one days from opening the account. Their six month rule per cardholder is also rubbish in my opinion. With General Electric I went from 1000 - 10000 in one month. This was through normal customer service channels, not the analyst number. With American Express that would have taken over one year. This is on a card that can be used anywhere, not just Dillards.

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GE is one lender that is currently generous with CLI's, but does not offer low APR which AMEX does. 

Also AMEX is considered as conservative and GE not so.....

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GE cards grow super fast and they give people limits much higher than what they have had in the past, but they're APR is normally pretty high so it's really hard to use those limits 

[chnceit]

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@ryanbush wrote:

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@chnceit wrote:

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@navigatethis12 wrote:

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@chnceit wrote:

revolvers 3Xs CLI at 61 days never heard of with other lenders 

---

The thing with American Express is that you can only get an increase of up to three times the current limit. On a 1000 card that is only 3000, while with other lenders you can ask for any amount you want and most will counter with something, but they do not restrict you to just three times the limit. Many lenders let you request an increase whenever you want, not making you wait sixty-one days from opening the account. Their six month rule per cardholder is also rubbish in my opinion. With General Electric I went from 1000 - 10000 in one month. This was through normal customer service channels, not the analyst number. With American Express that would have taken over one year. This is on a card that can be used anywhere, not just Dillards.

---

GE is one lender that is currently generous with CLI's, but does not offer low APR which AMEX does. 

Also AMEX is considered as conservative and GE not so.....

---

GE cards grow super fast and they give people limits much higher than what they have had in the past, but they're APR is normally pretty high so it's really hard to use those limits 

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+1

[navigatethis12]

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@chnceit wrote:

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GE is one lender that is currently generous with CLI's, but does not offer low APR which AMEX does. 

Also AMEX is considered as conservative and GE not so.....

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I was just stating that some lenders give high limits in a short period of time. Interest rate means nothing to me as I never have and never will carry a balance when the interest rate is not zero.

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@ryanbush wrote:

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GE cards grow super fast and they give people limits much higher than what they have had in the past, but they're APR is normally pretty high so it's really hard to use those limits 

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I don't see how a high interest rate makes a card difficult to use. If you need to carry a balance you would obviously do it on another card. I have no idea what the interest rate is on the General Electric cards I have.

[Denny33142]

I don't think many jobs that require you to travel would pay you 30K per year, I think we can all agree that most people in this income range will not be doing a great deal of traveling.

I am just trying to figure out why people in this income range have a charge card or want one so badly, and what they think the benifits of such a card will actually give them.

Also talking about APR is a moot point since you cannot normally carry a balance on a charge card.

[E150GT]

The backdating is nice. Also, they are a good way to get in with amex. I have not been a customer long enough with amex to get a revolver, but I was able to get the green. Now if I am ready to go to a revolver I can just apply and if I dont get it, its a soft pull and if I do get it the account gets backdated. I do like my green but I have been seriously thinking of getting rid of it in a year or so and getting an MB amex as it will earn MR points at a faster rate than my green and it costs the same. I could also use the voucher at dealer for accessories. 

[navigatethis12]

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@Denny33142 wrote:

I don't think many jobs that require you to travel would pay you 30K per year, I think we can all agree that most people in this income range will not be doing a great deal of traveling.

I am just trying to figure out why people in this income range have a charge card or want one so badly, and what they think the benifits of such a card will actually give them.

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It doesn't apply to me, but I believe you were right in the first post about people getting for the "prestige" of having an American Express card. Even the $25 for the Zync is outrageous to me for such a worthless card.

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@E150GT wrote:

The backdating is nice. Also, they are a good way to get in with amex. I have not been a customer long enough with amex to get a revolver, but I was able to get the green.

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I am not sure where you are getting this information from. I applied for the Blue Cash Everyday and received it straight away, as well as the Simply Cash. You do not need to obtain a charge card before receiving a revolving credit card.

[E150GT]

youre right, you do not need one, but I think that I would have. I applied for the BCE and was denied. I was approved for the green.

[bluesnowman]

tbh, the only reason I got my PRG was because I really wanted an Amex (but I didnt think I would get approved for a revolver, but I was certain that I had a chance at a charge card) and it helped me get in. But I probably will cancel if I am approved for the BCE in a few months. The PRG is good if you travel a good amount and spend enough for the annual fee. It is a good card IMO, but I think it is better if I close or cancel it now and go for the BCE (which meets my current needs) soon and maybe open up a charge card later on after graduation. 

[Swapmeet]

Just for the record, you are trying to compare a GE retail store card to an Amex revolver. GE is one company that is very generous with credit limits, loose on underwriting, and only uses soft pulls while they let you ask for a cli every day. I do not think that there are many card companies that operate that way. Let's not compare apples and oranges. I have not heard of another company that does that. Have you? 3x CLI at 61 days and another at 6 months is more than fair. You go to the extreme and use 1,000 credit limits as your example, but what if they started out at 5k? That is 15k at 61 days. And 25k 6 mos later, on your word alone. Seems pretty generous to me.