SCREW AMERICAN EXPRESS! Please help - haven't been here a while and I don't know what to do!

[score_building]

netpanther, i know the feeling.  they recently took my highest cl away (10k to 2.5k).  besides that they've been really good to me overall.  it's crunch time not just for me but for everyone.  my biggest sins i now realize were singnificant: a marginal ex. (but they aprroved it), high uti on other accounts and keeping a balance for 9/10 months instead of 3/4 on amex card.  now i know that these are major no-no's.  after inititally feeling blue i then realized they may have got to me anyway even if i hadn't tripped myself up -they're going after people who haven't made obvious mistakes like i did too now apparently.

KEEP the accounts, don't knee jerk close -at least for now...you can always revist and see how you feel about the scenario in a few months.  if you do close you may as well catch them off guard too anyway, perhaps in better times.  i almost think by reversing it on them and keeping the value of those open accts. on your report despite their display may benefit you more in the long run. just a hunch.

this is far from over yet and they can't wholesale dis customers forever.  something has got to change.   i mean if they don't have the money to lend so be it.   it is not what you do it's how you do it: wait it out and see if the pendulum swings back to good customer relations... i  charge a salad at a local take out called 'dirty bird' every other month and pif minutes after finishing the meal.  i call first to pay by phone to avoid any surprises in person at the restaurant...  just my 2 cents.  GL with your decision!

[haulingthescoreup]

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netpanther wrote:

....I have been thinking this morning, I know Greg B just posted thinking about closing accounts, but they have ticked me off so bady that I am thinking about closing the one account that has only the 500 dollar limit (previously 5K) just to show them I don't reallly need them.

I am also thinking about paying off the 3K I have on the other one (it has a 6K limit) ( I will have to do some very quick manuevering) and once paid off- closing that one too.

I know we shouldn't really close accts. as they help w/ our average age, but except for this six day late my accounts are pristine, my mortgages have NEVER been paid late, I haven't paid anything late (except for this six days one) in I don't know how many years, and well...

what do y'all think? Close or not close? I mean, if we all just sit there and take it, how do I ever know they will ever increase my limit again? What if the other CC soft pull and see they deleted me so badly?

Advice?

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I hear ya, but I think that you should put this decision down and walk away from it a bit. Unfortunately, you won't "show" them anything. Your account closings will just be a little blip on their server, and it won't influence a thing.

I closed my Barclays B&N the other day, but I did so because they let slip some info that indicated that it would never go anywhere, and that $500 CL looked ridiculous. (note to those just starting/ starting over --not trying to sound snotty here, one day you'll be underwhelmed by $500 CL's, too!) But I didn't do it because I was mad; I did it because I didn't need the TL, and keeping track of it wasn't worth the bother.

As scary as everything is in the financial world these days, I'm working hard to only take rational actions, not those based on emotion. Just because they're all running around crazy doesn't mean that I'm going to join in. JMO

BTW, sorry, I lost track, but if the late hasn't posted yet, and the lowered limits haven't posted, you might want to scamper off to a CU and grab a high-CL card now. Of course, they might not be happy when the reports update, but it's a thought.

[Scamp]

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:
As scary as everything is in the financial world these days, I'm working hard to only take rational actions, not those based on emotion. Just because they're all running around crazy doesn't mean that I'm going to join in.

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*applauding*  This gets my vote for post of the month, at least, if not the whole year!!

Well said, HTSU, and excellent advice anytime, but especially now, and not just with regard to closing CC's.  

Resisting the lemming mentality can be tough in times like this, but it's essential, I think, lest we create our own self-fulfilling fears.

[Anonymous]

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

....I have been thinking this morning, I know Greg B just posted thinking about closing accounts, but they have ticked me off so bady that I am thinking about closing the one account that has only the 500 dollar limit (previously 5K) just to show them I don't reallly need them.

I am also thinking about paying off the 3K I have on the other one (it has a 6K limit) ( I will have to do some very quick manuevering) and once paid off- closing that one too.

I know we shouldn't really close accts. as they help w/ our average age, but except for this six day late my accounts are pristine, my mortgages have NEVER been paid late, I haven't paid anything late (except for this six days one) in I don't know how many years, and well...

what do y'all think? Close or not close? I mean, if we all just sit there and take it, how do I ever know they will ever increase my limit again? What if the other CC soft pull and see they deleted me so badly?

Advice?

---

I hear ya, but I think that you should put this decision down and walk away from it a bit. Unfortunately, you won't "show" them anything. Your account closings will just be a little blip on their server, and it won't influence a thing.

I closed my Barclays B&N the other day, but I did so because they let slip some info that indicated that it would never go anywhere, and that $500 CL looked ridiculous. (note to those just starting/ starting over --not trying to sound snotty here, one day you'll be underwhelmed by $500 CL's, too!) But I didn't do it because I was mad; I did it because I didn't need the TL, and keeping track of it wasn't worth the bother.

As scary as everything is in the financial world these days, I'm working hard to only take rational actions, not those based on emotion. Just because they're all running around crazy doesn't mean that I'm going to join in. JMO

BTW, sorry, I lost track, but if the late hasn't posted yet, and the lowered limits haven't posted, you might want to scamper off to a CU and grab a high-CL card now. Of course, they might not be happy when the reports update, but it's a thought.

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They said the late was not going to report- they said they don't report lates that are less than 30 days, and they also said my late wasn't even considered late- they had a 10 day grace period. I don't know about that- and I also know that I am kicking myself in the pants that I didn't set up autopay a long time ago. I'll tell you the reason I didn't set it up- I could set it up online and I had to wait at least three week (maybe four) for the paperwork to get here, and I didn't send it back.

I will wait on this decision to close. But I am going to close my HSBC w/ it's 500 limit- I paid the 59 dollar AF once and I will not pay it again.

ETA- oh, one more thing- I'm not apping for anything more. I haven't app'd since last year, and my goal is to pay off the tuition that I had to pay so far. I want to be able to pay off everything and be debt free. I figure I don't need any more credit anyway.

TIA.

ETA- I don't mean that I am so perfect I don't need credit, what I mean is that I have enought CL's, I want to focus on paying off the 3 CC's and the HEL, and then start making extra principal payments on our mortgage.

Message Edited by netpanther on 10-08-2008 04:16 PM

Message Edited by netpanther on 10-08-2008 04:19 PM

[Anonymous]

Well I recieved an email today stating they are lowering my credit limit to $5200 ($200 above outstading balance) from 10k.  I call infuriated!  Spoke to one of there drones and she says my utilization is too high, I have too many mortgages.  Keep in mind I've been renting out my house to pay off credit cards as well as to save for a house.  They also stated that my Credit score has gone down!  NOT!!  It's gone up almost 100 points since the beginning of the year, but back on track!  I asked to speak to a supervisor and he explained that it wasn't my score or my utilization but the fact that I couldn't pay back my mortgages.  Well after arguing with him for a few minutes he goes off the line and then comes back and says he'll try upping my limit again.  So I update my info as far as employment and salary as well as the income from my rental, and he says he'll up the limit.  Phew!  I dodged a bullet!  I don't understand why they don't just call customers before they lower the limit.  They could have avoided my tyraid if they would have just done that!

Thanks for your time and good luck everyone else w/ dealing w/ AMEX!

jv

[GregB]

I'm trying to determine if there is ever a good reason to cancel an existing credit card that has no fee. If a store screws you over you just take your business elsewhere. BUT cancelling a credit card is very different from that. It feels like you are telling them something by cancelling but that probably doesn't have any impact on the drones answering the phones. We are dreaming if we think that gets through to the upper levels of management. 100,000 pissed off people cancelling their card probably goes unnoticed.

It is probably important to think about what is best for us. FICO scores are determined by length of credit, average age of accounts, new accounts, inquiries, percentage of accounts with a balance, etc. These are all negatively affected by cancelling an account and replacing it with another.

Also, I wouldn't worry about a piddly credit line looking bad. When I cancelled a credit card, I still had a $200 balance so they dropped the limit to $210 for one month and then when it was paid to zero, the card was cancelled. That account now shows on my report as a $210 limit with a high balance over $25K. In several credit reviews on mortgages, Business Loans, etc. nobody ever even commented on that. You have to wonder what looks better on a report, one with a card with a $10K limit and two $500 limit cards or one with the same $10K limit and one $500 limit cards. How about just the one $10K limit card? I would think the first would have the higher FICO score particularly if only the $10K limit card has a balance.

[Anonymous]

I was thinking about turning paper statements back on just to cost them $.

For me:

The $161 car insurance is the only thing getting paid with the gold- if they report it with a limit- it's getting closed.

My $34 cell bill and the Dw's $52  Cell bill on the Simply cash

Credit secure on the Delta-

keeping the $0 on the Blue cash

Going back to paying before the statement with these guys-

[FretlessMayhem]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I was thinking about turning paper statements back on just to cost them $.

For me:

The $161 car insurance is the only thing getting paid with the gold- if they report it with a limit- it's getting closed.

My $34 cell bill and the Dw's $52  Cell bill on the Simply cash

Credit secure on the Delta-

keeping the $0 on the Blue cash

Going back to paying before the statement with these guys-

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You upgraded to Gold? I thought you loved your Green!

[FretlessMayhem]

I've been away too long. I'm missing out on all sorts of info!

[Catch22]

The sad thing is they cut your limit and this increases your utilization factor.  The FICO algorithm is definitely NOT in the consumer's favor.