2 Years with AMEX

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

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@ccquest wrote:
I think it's all tied to those collections you've got. Whether you like it or not, an active collection on your report is one of the biggest hindrances. There's people approved 5 years post BK and don't get anything other than the initial approval until it falls off completely.

Just continue to work diligently to get those removed, and you should be golden to get some nice increases across the board.

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When I was approved for the Gold in 2018 I had 4 active chargeoffs and 7 active collections.

Amex needs to make up their mind on what kind of members they want. It's not right to invite someone to their birthday party, take their present, then make them sit outside in the dirt. Doesn't matter if they bring them punch once in a while, it's still not right.

[Girlzilla88]

@Brian_Earl_Spilner     Just for DP's my 2 years hits in December 2020 this year so Hopefully I can add some positive notes too       I don't have any collections, no BK's/NEG or Lates, just new/fresh to credit. 

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

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@K-in-Boston wrote:

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but unless the old Amex chargeoff is paid off I don't see them opening any gates for many more years.

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I figured that was the case within my first year. Everyone else kept telling me the floodgates would open once they got to know me, even you.

Plus, there are plenty of people here that have burned amex and have no problem growing their lines. Shoot, even people getting back in after BKs with larger balances than mine get bigger starter limits and can grow their cards. In this instance, difference is I can't get to 700+ scores until my derogatories age a couple more years. I'm still rebuilding and that's where the problem lies.

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

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@Girlzilla88 wrote:

@Brian_Earl_Spilner     Just for DP's my 2 years hits in December 2020 this year so Hopefully I can add some positive notes too       I don't have any collections, no BK's/NEG or Lates, just new/fresh to credit. 

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Then you should have no problems getting more cards or CLIs after 2 years. It'll be an interesting datapoint if you don't and I'm sure people will want to dig into your profile to find out why.

[ccquest]

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@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:

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@ccquest wrote:
I think it's all tied to those collections you've got. Whether you like it or not, an active collection on your report is one of the biggest hindrances. There's people approved 5 years post BK and don't get anything other than the initial approval until it falls off completely.

Just continue to work diligently to get those removed, and you should be golden to get some nice increases across the board.

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When I was approved for the Gold in 2018 I had 4 active chargeoffs and 7 active collections.

Amex needs to make up their mind on what kind of members they want. It's not right to invite someone to their birthday party, take their present, then make them sit outside in the dirt. Doesn't matter if they bring them punch once in a while, it's still not right.

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I think it's more that they give what they're comfortable with for you up front, and you just have to deal with that until your profile is clear. They're trusting you, just not for more.

But it is definitely mixed messaging when you can app for a new card and get more credit, but can't get any increase for existing cards- no argument there. Whether it's a $2k CLI or a $2K SL for a new card, it's still $2k more they're allowing you if you ask me.

[wasCB14]

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@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:

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@Harvey26 wrote:

@Brian_Earl_Spilner  I see you are a NFCU member have you thought about their Flagship Card?

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They've told me I was pre-approved twice and both times I was denied because they wouldn't give me the minimum starting line. Currently, I'm waiting for the SUB before I attempt again.

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If you can transfer some of your Delta Gold CL to your Delta Platinum, and show a few months of history with that, you may find it easier to reach the $5k minimum. Otherwise, your highest existing CL would be $1500.

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I'm gonna assume you meant More Rewards and Platinum. The Platinum is at 6400 already.

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I meant Amex Delta. Maybe your signature is out of date or my browser doesn't present it properly.

So the obstacle is that you're at or near your internal maximum with NFCU...not that you lack recent experience with ~$5k CLs.

[FinStar]

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@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:

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@ccquest wrote:
I think it's all tied to those collections you've got. Whether you like it or not, an active collection on your report is one of the biggest hindrances. There's people approved 5 years post BK and don't get anything other than the initial approval until it falls off completely.

Just continue to work diligently to get those removed, and you should be golden to get some nice increases across the board.

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When I was approved for the Gold in 2018 I had 4 active chargeoffs and 7 active collections.

Amex needs to make up their mind on what kind of members they want. It's not right to invite someone to their birthday party, take their present, then make them sit outside in the dirt. Doesn't matter if they bring them punch once in a while, it's still not right.

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Here's the key part.  They don't need to make up their mind.  Like the majority of lenders they have market penetration segments that yield those specific profiles and customers.  Like AmEx, Discover, Capital One, Wells Fargo, Chase, BoA, etc., are known to have similar lending portfolio segments.  

They can still rake in profits from a variety of fee income streams by giving the illusion that there's some sort of trade-off as the relationship grows.  In most cases, the relationship remains static or stagnant.  

I can certainly understand the frustration, but like any "party" (birthday or otherwise), you need to decide that when it's no longer "fun", then why stay?  They're not the ones making you sit outside in the dirt.  You have the option to leave.  Just saying.

[Anonymous]

I'm basically fall under the same situation I got approved around 2 years ago for Gold Delta and Hilton both $1K CL. The past 2 years I use the Delta Gold for paying a lot of automatic payments like Pandora, my storage unit, Xfinity phone bill and cable etc.. and I also do a lot of daily spending with it it's not uncommon for me to hit the $1000 CL then have to make a $300-400 payment or at times I'll do a full balance payment for the $1K.. I tried a few times recently to get a little $500 extra CLI on the Gold Delta and can't get one but it's fine I won't go crazy wondering why I still have a 630-660 CS across the board just at times when I travel I would like a little more cushion on those security deposit holds etc.. but all around I still give AMEX the love hope one day they'll give me one.

Also I did have one collection with AMEX for around $750 years ago that I settled so AMEX IMO has all the right to keep me under bay with my limit I respect them for even allowing me another card to begin so. Beggers can't be choosers.

[Anonymous]

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@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:

Since first visiting this site, AMEX has always been touted as a relationship based lender. Treat them well, and they'll reciprocate. I just hit 2 years with my Delta Gold card, which is significant due to what's been said here.

As a rebuilder, the common knowledge being passed around is if AMEX approves you with a $500 or $1000 limit, you just squeaked in and will be effectively leashed. When I first started coming here, that timeline was 1 year and has since stretched to 2 years for them to loosen or remove the leash. Things like 61 day CLIs don't apply to us.

I initially was approved, with no pre-approval, for the Delta Gold at $1000 with a 641 EX on 10/17/18. As such, I tempered my expectations, but made my CLI requests like clockwork, 61 days then every 91 days after each denial, never being approved. It became frustrating and I wanted to stop using the card, but was always reminded it would take 1 or 2 years. I continued to spend between $3-5k a month on it while PIF.

In January of 2020 I applied without any pre-approvals and was approved for a Gold and a Delta Platinum for $1400. Being that this was more than the $1000 "starting limit" I assumed I would start to see some growth. I spend between $4-5k a month across all of my cards with a high of $7k on a single card one month in addition to normal spend on the other two. Worked out to be around $10k, PIF. Now, these approvals are the only time I saw a relationship type aspect. I jumped the gun before they had updated my score after a very large payoff, so both approvals were with a 625 EX.

Up until this point, I still have not seen a CLI. Today, I applied for the Schwab Platinum and Bonvoy as that would basically round out all the cards I would need from them. Income is $70k individual with $116k household. I have about $19k in my Schwab brokerage accounts that I opened a few months ago, $12k in liquid assets across my banks and credit unions, and I didn't include my other investments or retirement accounts. DTI is stupid low because my house is paid off with my $700 car payment basically being my only debt. I was denied for both due to FICO score. Recon was a joke because they basically didn't do one. There was absolutely no interest in hearing what I had to say.

I also applied for a 3x CLI increase today, and was denied for that. Since my AF is coming due on my Delta Gold, I called in to see if there was a retention offer that could offset the AF or possibly an AF waiver. There was none. I now have 30 days to decide if I want to close it, or downgrade it to Blue.

Based on my experience, the whole 1-2 years of "getting to know you" is a bunch of hogwash. Over the last 2 years, my scores have gone up ~150 points, I've removed almost all of my collections, and my chargeoffs have been paid with some being removed. I've spent a significant portion of me and my wife's pay on them every year, basically almost all of it, in an attempt to grow limits large enough to actually book two roundtrip flights and to get approved for the cards we need. At this point, minus the rebuilder and bucketed cards I'm closing this year, they are pretty much my lowest limit cards. 

While I knew they liked cleaner and higher score profiles, my takeaway is they are NOT a relationship based bank if you either, don't have very good credit, or don't have very high income and spend.

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Good details, B_E_S -- sorry to hear its been a lousy time for you. Maybe the sock drawer is calling? 

[Anonymous]

As @Brian_Earl_Spilner said way up above, our profiles were very similar and his approval drove me to try it out for myself. My two year anniversary is 11/15/2020. I have to wait longer to request an increase, as I was told No on 9/23/2020 or thereabouts, so when I try in late December I'll have just over 25 months of perfect history with them. I will also still have one old paid collection on my EX report at that time. I will try it though and we'll all get some insight as to what matters more, the history (if they grant the increase) or that one non-Amex blemish on my profile (if they don't). 

I will be eligible to EE it away on 2/1/2021, so if I am turned down in December, when my next window opens in March my EX file will be pristine and at that point I won't be able to explain it if they still say no. Regardless, my DPs will be coming this winter on this matter.