topic Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit in Credit Cards

Amex platinum hard spending limit

Tony542577 — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 06:33:11 GMT

Hey guys,

I got the Amex platinum card 4 months ago and I've spent probably about $14,000 on it with things I've been fixing around my house, I've been paying it but leaving about $400 each month just to pay the interest on it and keep Amex happy making a little money on that side. I've had the money to pay it, it's just I've always put a small balance on new cards so it looks like I used them and paid a little interest too. This last month I paid it off in full and had gotten the statement 0, but yesterday they emailed me that "We're reaching out because we wanted to let you know as quickly as possible that after a recent review, we have assigned a Preset Spending Limit of $25600 to your account." I don't understand why. Before it was no preset spending limit. Should I call and fight it or wait a couple months put more spend and keep paying in full then call?

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 10:03:52 GMT

@Tony542577 Many believe that American Express wants members to pay in full, and quickly. I recommend to never keep a balance on their charge cards. Like you, I have a charge card. Mine is the Green. I have no preset spending limit, but every time I charge something I pay it immediately when the authorization shows. I believe this is the type of behavior American Express expects. Since they recently assigned your card a spending limit, it means they are having trust issues with you at this time. Perhaps if you pay your charges immediately and never keep a balance, Amex will restore your status. American Express is different from other lenders. They seem to make their profits from charges. Other lenders don't want you to pay in full, but instead want you to continue paying interest every month. Not American Express. Amex wants immediate payment in full, then continue and charge again.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

OmarGB9 — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 11:08:26 GMT

Unfortunately I think this is due to you leaving a balance on there every month for several months in a row. Amex is happier when you DON'T carry any balances. They don't want you to pay interest - they want you to pay in full every month (hence the charge card design).

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 13:28:18 GMT

@OmarGB9 wrote:
Unfortunately I think this is due to you leaving a balance on there every month for several months in a row. Amex is happier when you DON'T carry any balances. They don't want you to pay interest - they want you to pay in full every month (hence the charge card design).

RIght, and I really wouldn't recommend paying interest on new credit cards either. They make some money from the swipe fees. While interest is money to them, not PIF is a risk for them, so they will be perfectly fine with using it and PIF, and you will save money too.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

DSTforlife — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 13:29:24 GMT

this is what i don't understand. If you let the statement cut, and then pay in full by the payment date, technically you are not carrying a balance for any length of time....and you are not paying any interest. Seems weird that AMEX would penalize the OP essentially for paying the statement balance in full each month....maybe there's something else at play here.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

GatorGuy — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 14:04:33 GMT

I will never understand this idea of voluntarily carrying a balance and paying interest.

As far as lenders are concerned, there is only one reason a borrower would carry a balance and pay interest, it's because you are spending more than you have. This is not a good thing. They will not look favorable on this. You will always look riskier than someone who pays in full.

Luckily for you it sounds like they gave you a generous hard limit. Keep spending how you were but pay in full every single month. For ALL your cards.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

simplynoir — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 14:18:36 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@OmarGB9 wrote:
Unfortunately I think this is due to you leaving a balance on there every month for several months in a row. Amex is happier when you DON'T carry any balances. They don't want you to pay interest - they want you to pay in full every month (hence the charge card design).
RIght, and I really wouldn't recommend paying interest on new credit cards either. They make some money from the swipe fees. While interest is money to them, not PIF is a risk for them, so they will be perfectly fine with using it and PIF, and you will save money too.

This here pretty much. With regards to getting the hard limit removed and the NPSL reinstated it's YMMV on when they do that. You might have to initially call them to see if they know when it can be removed and follow up every once in awhile after. It may take awhile but it can be done it's just the timeline may just be shorter or longer than you expect

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

W261w261 — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 14:28:16 GMT

Change your behavior and hope for the best. If you do that you'll get back to NPSL, but it's any body's guess when. Your spending limit seems to be quite high, something you can easily live with. It could be a lot worse.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

DSTforlife — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 14:39:22 GMT

my point is if the OP is letting $400 report on the statement, and spending 14k, surely the payments made covers the statement balance each month...which means they should not be paying any interest. Interest doesn't start unless there's a remaining statement balance left after the payment date...all credit cards give you the initial grace period of no interest until the payment date.

for example, month 0: spend 5k, and pay 4.5k which means 500 is the 1st statement balance. next month: spend 5k, and pay 5k which means the 500 statement balance is paid and the remaining 500 is what's remaining for current balance because the first 500 of the 5k payment is applied to the statement balance. no interest is charged.

unless the OP is using the POT feature, the charge card's statement balance has to be paid in full each month.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

bigseegar — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 14:48:47 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Tony542577 Many believe that American Express wants members to pay in full, and quickly. I recommend to never keep a balance on their charge cards. Like you, I have a charge card. Mine is the Green. I have no preset spending limit, but every time I charge something I pay it immediately when the authorization shows. I believe this is the type of behavior American Express expects. Since they recently assigned your card a spending limit, it means they are having trust issues with you at this time. Perhaps if you pay your charges immediately and never keep a balance, Amex will restore your status. American Express is different from other lenders. They seem to make their profits from charges. Other lenders don't want you to pay in full, but instead want you to continue paying interest every month. Not American Express. Amex wants immediate payment in full, then continue and charge again.

On their Charge Cards yes they expect/much prefer PIF every month. However it doesn't matter to them whether that is PIF on the Due Date or earlier really. There is no need and it doesn't help your standing any really to pay it as soons as you make the charge. AmEx just likes to see it paid monthly, period. I've been (well off and on with a 19 year gap lol) an AmEx Card Member since 1984 and I've always paid on or just before the the due date and never had a hard limit placed on either my Green, Gold or Platinum cards. They also could be concerned about your spending vs your reported income as well or your total credit crad UTL from all sources as they pull your credit every 2-4 weeks.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Brian_Earl_Spilner — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 14:54:30 GMT

@GatorGuy wrote:
I will never understand this idea of voluntarily carrying a balance and paying interest.

As far as lenders are concerned, there is only one reason a borrower would carry a balance and pay interest, it's because you are spending more than you have. This is not a good thing. They will not look favorable on this. You will always look riskier than someone who pays in full.

Luckily for you it sounds like they gave you a generous hard limit. Keep spending how you were but pay in full every single month. For ALL your cards.

Sometimes it can be advantageous to carry a balance from a trended data perspective. Some lenders, like Amex, are very data driven. If you pif for 5 years and then all of a sudden carry a balance it could raise flags. Some lenders, like Amex, will move swiftly with AA believing something is wrong. Some will restrict usage or balance chase. For other lenders, they may simply start removing offers like BT or temp rates. It really depends on the lender. Then you have to worry about AA from other lenders when they see things like balance chasing.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

DSTforlife — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 15:06:46 GMT

this is exactly my point. as long as the 400 statement balance is paid by the due date, there's no interest and should not be the cause of any adverse action by Amex....because paying the statement in full is how the card is intended to be used. like you, i wonder if there was something else that spooked them.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Suzette2 — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 15:19:18 GMT

@Tony542577 wrote:
Hey guys,

I got the Amex platinum card 4 months ago and I've spent probably about $14,000 on it with things I've been fixing around my house, I've been paying it but leaving about $400 each month just to pay the interest on it and keep Amex happy making a little money on that side. I've had the money to pay it, it's just I've always put a small balance on new cards so it looks like I used them and paid a little interest too. This last month I paid it off in full and had gotten the statement 0, but yesterday they emailed me that "We're reaching out because we wanted to let you know as quickly as possible that after a recent review, we have assigned a Preset Spending Limit of $25600 to your account." I don't understand why. Before it was no preset spending limit. Should I call and fight it or wait a couple months put more spend and keep paying in full then call?

I have to say I disagree with some posters here. I'm not sure about the platinum, but does it have the Plan It feature? I just got a CLI on my BCP (auto) and I've put heavy spend on the card. Each month I've paid as I've gone along or let it accumulate then pay at the end of each month.
I put big spends on Plan It but pay them off too. Last month I had to have a balance carry over - due to emergency vet bill that I also put on Plan It. I didn't max out tho- the util was 45 percent.
This month I got an auto CLI. I've had it since March. They also gave me a Delta platinum in may.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Suzette2 — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 15:24:15 GMT

THIS. I have paid as I've gone along and also just at once in a lump sum on the due date. I've used Plan It. They like spend and monthly consistent pay, I think. Good income helps too.

there must be something else going on.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Brian_Earl_Spilner — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 15:27:40 GMT

@DSTforlife wrote:
this is exactly my point. as long as the 400 statement balance is paid by the due date, there's no interest and should not be the cause of any adverse action by Amex....because paying the statement in full is how the card is intended to be used. like you, i wonder if there was something else that spooked them.

More than likely the issue is the card is 4 months old with significant spend. A spending limit being added is typically indicative of a concern about ability to pay. That being said, most people that get a hard limit usually get 2-3k so 25k seems a bit odd. We would need more data regarding ability to pay to draw a correlation.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

bigseegar — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 15:29:41 GMT

@Suzette2 wrote:
@Tony542577 wrote:
Hey guys,

I got the Amex platinum card 4 months ago and I've spent probably about $14,000 on it with things I've been fixing around my house, I've been paying it but leaving about $400 each month just to pay the interest on it and keep Amex happy making a little money on that side. I've had the money to pay it, it's just I've always put a small balance on new cards so it looks like I used them and paid a little interest too. This last month I paid it off in full and had gotten the statement 0, but yesterday they emailed me that "We're reaching out because we wanted to let you know as quickly as possible that after a recent review, we have assigned a Preset Spending Limit of $25600 to your account." I don't understand why. Before it was no preset spending limit. Should I call and fight it or wait a couple months put more spend and keep paying in full then call?
I have to say I disagree with some posters here. I'm not sure about the platinum, but does it have the Plan It feature? I just got a CLI on my BCP (auto) and I've put heavy spend on the card. Each month I've paid as I've gone along or let it accumulate then pay at the end of each month.
I put big spends on Plan It but pay them off too. Last month I had to have a balance carry over - due to emergency vet bill that I also put on Plan It. I didn't max out tho- the util was 45 percent.
This month I got an auto CLI. I've had it since March. They also gave me a Delta platinum in may.

HUGE difference in the AmeX Platinum card which is a CHARGE card (that does not get CLI's as it typically has No "Hard" Credit Limit and how AmEx "expects" it to be handled and your BCP and Delta Platinum which are both CREDIT cards designed to carry balances in AmEx's eyes. I know you're pretty new to the AmEx world. Comparing the two totally different formatted cards and usage and CL's is like comparing Apples to Oranges

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

SouthJamaica — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 16:30:34 GMT

@Tony542577 wrote:
Hey guys,

I got the Amex platinum card 4 months ago and I've spent probably about $14,000 on it with things I've been fixing around my house, I've been paying it but leaving about $400 each month just to pay the interest on it and keep Amex happy making a little money on that side. I've had the money to pay it, it's just I've always put a small balance on new cards so it looks like I used them and paid a little interest too. This last month I paid it off in full and had gotten the statement 0, but yesterday they emailed me that "We're reaching out because we wanted to let you know as quickly as possible that after a recent review, we have assigned a Preset Spending Limit of $25600 to your account." I don't understand why. Before it was no preset spending limit. Should I call and fight it or wait a couple months put more spend and keep paying in full then call?

I don't think fighting it will get you anywhere.

If you stop your practice of leaving $400 on the card, and start just paying it off in full every month, I believe they will in time restore your NPSL status. I'm guessing in 6 months.

Since you got an unusually high preset spending limit, you'll be able to live with it. In fact you might be better off with that than with a fluctuating internal soft limit.

I'm not a fan of Amex charge cards, and this is one of the reasons why. They seem to love to create uncertainty and keep you guessing.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

TRC_WA — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 16:06:42 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
RIght, and I really wouldn't recommend paying interest on new credit cards either. They make some money from the swipe fees. While interest is money to them, not PIF is a risk for them, so they will be perfectly fine with using it and PIF, and you will save money too.

My first statement on my Delta Gold was $3200... with something like 80 swipes for the month... LOL... I ran everything through it and I do mean everything. I PIF and will continue to do so because that is what Amex wants... and yes i'm aware mine is a "credit" card.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 16:39:01 GMT

@DSTforlife wrote:
my point is if the OP is letting $400 report on the statement, and spending 14k, surely the payments made covers the statement balance each month...which means they should not be paying any interest. Interest doesn't start unless there's a remaining statement balance left after the payment date...all credit cards give you the initial grace period of no interest until the payment date.

for example, month 0: spend 5k, and pay 4.5k which means 500 is the 1st statement balance. next month: spend 5k, and pay 5k which means the 500 statement balance is paid and the remaining 500 is what's remaining for current balance because the first 500 of the 5k payment is applied to the statement balance. no interest is charged.

unless the OP is using the POT feature, the charge card's statement balance has to be paid in full each month.

I believe the confusion here is that the Platinum card is a charge card. You are required to pay the entire balance by the due date. If you have left $500 past the due date, then you have not paid the entire balance in full by the due date. I have been a member since 1997, and it has always been this way. But recently they began a new payment plan feature, and a new pay over time feature. I have never used these new features, and have opted out of them. Maybe these features are what is being used to carry over a $500 balance past the due date. I recommend you deactivate this feature. You can do so in the statements area while using the app. Simply put, the Amex charge cards are different than credit cards. It's best to think of the charge card as a debit card. Payment of the entire balance must be made in full by the due date.

Re: Amex platinum hard spending limit

Suzette2 — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 17:26:40 GMT

@bigseegar wrote:
@Suzette2 wrote:
@Tony542577 wrote:
Hey guys,

I got the Amex platinum card 4 months ago and I've spent probably about $14,000 on it with things I've been fixing around my house, I've been paying it but leaving about $400 each month just to pay the interest on it and keep Amex happy making a little money on that side. I've had the money to pay it, it's just I've always put a small balance on new cards so it looks like I used them and paid a little interest too. This last month I paid it off in full and had gotten the statement 0, but yesterday they emailed me that "We're reaching out because we wanted to let you know as quickly as possible that after a recent review, we have assigned a Preset Spending Limit of $25600 to your account." I don't understand why. Before it was no preset spending limit. Should I call and fight it or wait a couple months put more spend and keep paying in full then call?
I have to say I disagree with some posters here. I'm not sure about the platinum, but does it have the Plan It feature? I just got a CLI on my BCP (auto) and I've put heavy spend on the card. Each month I've paid as I've gone along or let it accumulate then pay at the end of each month.
I put big spends on Plan It but pay them off too. Last month I had to have a balance carry over - due to emergency vet bill that I also put on Plan It. I didn't max out tho- the util was 45 percent.
This month I got an auto CLI. I've had it since March. They also gave me a Delta platinum in may.
HUGE difference in the AmeX Platinum card which is a CHARGE card (that does not get CLI's as it typically has No "Hard" Credit Limit and how AmEx "expects" it to be handled and your BCP and Delta Platinum which are both CREDIT cards designed to carry balances in AmEx's eyes. I know you're pretty new to the AmEx world. Comparing the two totally different formatted cards and usage and CL's is like comparing Apples to Oranges

Great point - and why I placed the caveat that I didn't know about the plat. Glad someone explained it