topic Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently?? in Credit Cards

Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:30:47 GMT

So I was recently approved for the Amex Platinum with 100k points bonus offer after a 3k spend in 3 months.

Got my card activated it, and switched all my stuff that auto pays to it - home phone, home alarm, sirrus radio etc....

BUT I have an interesting idea.

I own a used car dealership in a partnership with a friend. This business is relatively new but is going relatively well so far. I also have a govt job in law enforcement.

We have each invested 50k cash into this business and are using the 100k as revolving inventory. So far we have about 60k in inventory at any given time, with about 20 sold pending payment (we do a lot of internet sales and take deposits).

In my used car business I have a cultivated a relationship with a local Chevrolet dealership whereby we purchase some of the vehicles that they recieve as trade ins, for resale on our lot. We are currently purchasing around 1-2 vehicles a week. We spend between 2k and 5k a week with him. As it stands now we write him a business check each week for the vehicles that we want, and pickup the titles to the vehicle(s) we bought last week (for which our previous check has cleared). Since the amounts are relatively low - I broached the used car manager about the possiblity about using my amex to pay for these vehicles. - His response was I don't see why not as long as they will approve the purchases.

I have the capital in the bank for these vehicles and would have NO problem paying in full within 24 hrs of each charge. Would this work with AMEX? Obviously my intent here is to acquire as many points as possible. Or would this throw up all kinds of red flags?

Let me know your thoughts..

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

kdm31091 — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:32:47 GMT

If you are going to make an unusually large transaction, you'll want to call them ahead of time and get it approved. "NPSL" doesn't mean "spend however much you want". There's still an internal limit based on your history, profile, etc and since the card is brand new, the internal limit is unlikely to be huge.

I think you are fine, but if you have a large purchase, definitely call them.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:36:22 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So I was recently approved for the Amex Platinum with 100k points bonus offer after a 3k spend in 3 months.

Got my card activated it, and switched all my stuff that auto pays to it - home phone, home alarm, sirrus radio etc....

BUT I have an interesting idea.

I own a used car dealership in a partnership with a friend. This business is relatively new but is going relatively well so far. I also have a govt job in law enforcement.

We have each invested 50k cash into this business and are using the 100k as revolving inventory. So far we have about 60k in inventory at any given time, with about 20 sold pending payment (we do a lot of internet sales and take deposits).

In my used car business I have a cultivated a relationship with a local Chevrolet dealership whereby we purchase some of the vehicles that they recieve as trade ins, for resale on our lot. We are currently purchasing around 1-2 vehicles a week. We spend between 2k and 5k a week with him. As it stands now we write him a business check each week for the vehicles that we want, and pickup the titles to the vehicle(s) we bought last week (for which our previous check has cleared). Since the amounts are relatively low - I broached the used car manager about the possiblity about using my amex to pay for these vehicles. - His response was I don't see why not as long as they will approve the purchases.

I have the capital in the bank for these vehicles and would have NO problem paying in full within 24 hrs of each charge. Would this work with AMEX? Obviously my intent here is to acquire as many points as possible. Or would this throw up all kinds of red flags?

Let me know your thoughts..

Amex definitely cares how you spend on a charge card. If you spend and pay off a lot more then your reported income supports it will set off alarm bells with them and you run the risk of having your account suspended and/or closed. For example if your reported income is $60K and you're routinely spending $10K/month on your card this will trigger those warning bells with them.

Additionally they absolutely do not like their customers using personal cards for business expenses and the same adverse actions can occur for doing this. If you run a legitimate business I'd suggest looking into opening a business credit card account with them.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

CreditCuriosity — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:42:51 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
So I was recently approved for the Amex Platinum with 100k points bonus offer after a 3k spend in 3 months.

Got my card activated it, and switched all my stuff that auto pays to it - home phone, home alarm, sirrus radio etc....

BUT I have an interesting idea.

I own a used car dealership in a partnership with a friend. This business is relatively new but is going relatively well so far. I also have a govt job in law enforcement.

We have each invested 50k cash into this business and are using the 100k as revolving inventory. So far we have about 60k in inventory at any given time, with about 20 sold pending payment (we do a lot of internet sales and take deposits).

In my used car business I have a cultivated a relationship with a local Chevrolet dealership whereby we purchase some of the vehicles that they recieve as trade ins, for resale on our lot. We are currently purchasing around 1-2 vehicles a week. We spend between 2k and 5k a week with him. As it stands now we write him a business check each week for the vehicles that we want, and pickup the titles to the vehicle(s) we bought last week (for which our previous check has cleared). Since the amounts are relatively low - I broached the used car manager about the possiblity about using my amex to pay for these vehicles. - His response was I don't see why not as long as they will approve the purchases.

I have the capital in the bank for these vehicles and would have NO problem paying in full within 24 hrs of each charge. Would this work with AMEX? Obviously my intent here is to acquire as many points as possible. Or would this throw up all kinds of red flags?

Let me know your thoughts..

Amex definitely cares how you spend on a charge card. If you spend and pay off a lot more then your reported income supports it will set off alarm bells with them and you run the risk of having your account suspended and/or closed. For example if your reported income is $60K and you're routinely spending $10K/month on your card this will trigger those warning bells with them.

Additionally they absolutely do not like their customers using personal cards for business expenses and the same adverse actions can occur for doing this. If you run a legitimate business I'd suggest looking into opening a business credit card account with them.

Deffinetly open a business CC with them, should be easy to get approved for if you already have personal credit with them. They do have some nice bonus offers on business cards as well, just higher spend requirements.. Also them are churnable unlike personal cards and also a bonus is they don't report to your personal credit another bonus in my book aka utilization!

It is a definite no-no with Amex to mix business/personal charges as that is one sure way to get a FR and shut down on your person card.. As irish stated if your take home is say 4k from your Gov't job a month and you are spending 5-10k a month, something is not looking right and Amex will flag you and the fun begins.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:42:26 GMT

This was what I was worried about. I have a 6 figure income from my day job, and a rental property as well.

However, this would probably cycle an additional 100k - 150k through the card in a year, beyond my personal expenses.

Will there be any kind of inquiry on their part before they take action?

We are a legimate licensed bonded and insured used car dealership with a brick and mortar retail lot. However we have only been open since March. Should I call them and see if they will add a business card?

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

CreditCuriosity — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:45:41 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
This was what I was worried about. I have a 6 figure income from my day job, and a rental property as well.

However, this would probably cycle an additional 100k - 150k through the card in a year, beyond my personal expenses.

Will there be any kind of inquiry on their part before they take action?

We are a legimate licensed bonded and insured used car dealership with a brick and mortar retail lot. However we have only been open since March. Should I call them and see if they will add a business card?

No warning your card/cards will be suspended without notice.

Just open up a business card is my advise to you and you make enough with your normal job that you can meet the 3k spend without much pain. They don't care you have only been in business for a short time it is based on your personal credit and they give out credit to people that do business on ebay.. Look at their business carrd section. I believe they have an offer on the business PRG for 75k MR atm, might be gone not sure.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:46:07 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
This was what I was worried about. I have a 6 figure income from my day job, and a rental property as well.

However, this would probably cycle an additional 100k - 150k through the card in a year, beyond my personal expenses.

Will there be any kind of inquiry on their part before they take action?

We are a legimate licensed bonded and insured used car dealership with a brick and mortar retail lot. However we have only been open since March. Should I call them and see if they will add a business card?

No, they typically don't give out warnings. You may be asked to provide proof of additional income or they may put a hard limit on your charge card. Or they can take other actions.

No, you don't need to call them about a business card. You would need to apply for one from their web page. Very easy to do.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:46:54 GMT

Duplicate post

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:47:02 GMT

I'm not worried about the 3k spend - Heck I can charge my 2800.00 quartely property tax bill and cover that (and yes, my municipality accepts cc's directly). I'm looking to maximize my rewards beyond the 100k bonus points.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

kdm31091 — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:52:53 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
This was what I was worried about. I have a 6 figure income from my day job, and a rental property as well.

However, this would probably cycle an additional 100k - 150k through the card in a year, beyond my personal expenses.

Will there be any kind of inquiry on their part before they take action?

We are a legimate licensed bonded and insured used car dealership with a brick and mortar retail lot. However we have only been open since March. Should I call them and see if they will add a business card?

Definitely app for a business card then. With all that spend, you will set off alarms on a personal card, IMO.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

noobody — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:53:16 GMT

you should open a business amex account to do these kind transactions.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

yfan — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:57:01 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I'm not worried about the 3k spend - Heck I can charge my 2800.00 quartely property tax bill and cover that (and yes, my municipality accepts cc's directly). I'm looking to maximize my rewards beyond the 100k bonus points.

Well, the Platinum isn't a rewards maximization card anyway. The best you can do with that is 1 point per dollar spent. Go with one of the business cards and you'll be able to maximize MR points better. I am not sure though if you can mesh personal and business MR points, but you should be able to use a transfer partner to transfer points from both accounts.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Callandra — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 16:59:57 GMT

@yfan wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
I'm not worried about the 3k spend - Heck I can charge my 2800.00 quartely property tax bill and cover that (and yes, my municipality accepts cc's directly). I'm looking to maximize my rewards beyond the 100k bonus points.
Well, the Platinum isn't a rewards maximization card anyway. The best you can do with that is 1 point per dollar spent. Go with one of the business cards and you'll be able to maximize MR points better. I am not sure though if you can mesh personal and business MR points, but you should be able to use a transfer partner to transfer points from both accounts.

I don't have an Amex card but it seems like Platinum is more for the perks than earning points. PRG seems to be the best way to earn MR with all the extra spend categories for the charge cards.

I also second getting a business card with Amex (seems like they are relatively easy to get unlike some other banks); you don't want to mesh personal and business transactions.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

jim44 — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 17:04:29 GMT

Sorry I can't help you with the AMEX question but I'd check with the GM of the Chevy dealer to see if they would allow the AMEX arrangement. I don't know the relationship that dealership has with AMEX but unless the transaction fee is waved by AMEX you'll be paying more than wholesale price for those vehicles. Personally I'd stick with the business check route but that's just me. If you want your titles faster (so you can collect from your retail customer's faster) pay the Chevy dealer with a Cashier's check. Glad to see your new dealership is doing so well!

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 17:11:08 GMT

Like I said I only broached it with the used car manager - who I have been buying from / dealing with. He seemed amenable to the Amex idea - dunno if he has to go higher up the chain. Here in NJ we can send a car on a temp tag for 30 days and we usually do the title work to flip the title into the new owner's name so a week delay is no big deal in getting titles, besides our average turnaround has been 12 days (acquisition to sold). I've gotten pretty good pricing from him so far, especially considering the fees the auctions charge if I were to buy a car from them = $150 or so on a $1500 car. Up to $500 on a $30k car.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

jim44 — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 18:00:26 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Like I said I only broached it with the used car manager - who I have been buying from / dealing with. He seemed amenable to the Amex idea - dunno if he has to go higher up the chain. Here in NJ we can send a car on a temp tag for 30 days and we usually do the title work to flip the title into the new owner's name so a week delay is no big deal in getting titles, besides our average turnaround has been 12 days (acquisition to sold). I've gotten pretty good pricing from him so far, especially considering the fees the auctions charge if I were to buy a car from them = $150 or so on a $1500 car. Up to $500 on a $30k car.

12 days is a great average! Cash deals are simple.... bank and CU funded are different, we have to produce a DMV printed lien receipt before the lienholder will pay. I hear you on those auction fees! We only sell to auctions and take a bath on sell fees, no sale fees, seller success fees, internet fees, recon etc. All that takes away from profit. That's why I was wondering if AMEX would charge the Chevy dealer a merchant's fee that they might add into the price of your cars. At 3.5% for a $3000 car adds up to $105. in lost profit. Let us know what you decide to do.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

red259 — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 18:09:26 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So I was recently approved for the Amex Platinum with 100k points bonus offer after a 3k spend in 3 months.

Got my card activated it, and switched all my stuff that auto pays to it - home phone, home alarm, sirrus radio etc....

BUT I have an interesting idea.

I own a used car dealership in a partnership with a friend. This business is relatively new but is going relatively well so far. I also have a govt job in law enforcement.

We have each invested 50k cash into this business and are using the 100k as revolving inventory. So far we have about 60k in inventory at any given time, with about 20 sold pending payment (we do a lot of internet sales and take deposits).

In my used car business I have a cultivated a relationship with a local Chevrolet dealership whereby we purchase some of the vehicles that they recieve as trade ins, for resale on our lot. We are currently purchasing around 1-2 vehicles a week. We spend between 2k and 5k a week with him. As it stands now we write him a business check each week for the vehicles that we want, and pickup the titles to the vehicle(s) we bought last week (for which our previous check has cleared). Since the amounts are relatively low - I broached the used car manager about the possiblity about using my amex to pay for these vehicles. - His response was I don't see why not as long as they will approve the purchases.

I have the capital in the bank for these vehicles and would have NO problem paying in full within 24 hrs of each charge. Would this work with AMEX? Obviously my intent here is to acquire as many points as possible. Or would this throw up all kinds of red flags?

Let me know your thoughts..

Assuming you mean you applied for the pesonal version of the plat this will raise all sorts of flags. Amex will definitely be up in arms about you running these types of business expenses through a personal card. In addition, depending upon the income provided to Amex if this type of spend is out of whack for what you make in a year I would not be suprised if your accounts got frozen and you set off an FR. PIF isn't going to fix it because Amex is going to what to know what is going on with such extreme spending and it will look suspicious. If you want to do this then get an amex business card.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 18:12:11 GMT

So far i've only dealt with cash deals...

Our average sale is about 4k with a 900 avg profit. Not great, but it's been consistent. I sell between 5-8 vehicles a week. I still need to buy at auction to maintain volume but the chevy dealer is my go to first. I'm not the only one who has a piece of him though so he tries to get the right cars to the right ppl. But we pull at least one a week out of there, 2 most weeks.

I dont know if I want to go higher end YET. I know that it would require financing ppl (which we currently do not do). We still have a lot to learn, and are just really getting our feet wet in this business. But we've been making a steady profit, and are starting to get some referal buisness, which is nice.

Re: Does AMEX care how much you charge as long as you pay consistently??

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 20:14:25 GMT

Ha. Def don't use your personal card for business purposes. Their Ajax PRG open card is real tempting.