AMEX Reducing their standards? Friend approved with NO CREDIT

[Anonymous]

---

@Revelate wrote:

---

---

Oddly I just had this thought.

Why buy a super expensive car, or house, or possibly even clothes when I can display my wealth with a Centurion. 

Not that my spend qualifies but $5K a year or whatever it is, sounds like a bargain if you care about such things.

---

Size of the "impressed" group!   Some cars are obviously flashy and expensive, so those easily impressed will be impressed, and similarly when you drop into conversation (quite spontaneously) "Oh, I do like coming home to my 10 bedroom house in [desireable place]"  Clothes are harder because not everyone will recognize the cost of the items.  But centurian:  well, for those impressed most would have been equally impressed by the Plat (or even Gold) which would have been an even better bargain.  And yes, some will know the difference, but these will be MyFico types, and you don't want to hang around those sort of people, as anyone hanging around on an internet credit card forum is almost by definition Not Worth Impressing.

[redpat]

Who gives a s..t about lower or high standards it's all about the rewards that a cards offer.  Where I live no one would care if someone pulled out a Centurion card or be impressed.  A good friend has one and travels worldwide for business and that is the only reason that he has it.  I've seen first hand the perks when I took a trip with him across the pond.

It's not about the flash but about superior service.

[Anonymous]

---

@redpat wrote:

Who gives a s..t about lower or high standards it's all about the rewards that a cards offer.  Where I live no one would care if someone pulled out a Centurion card or be impressed.  A good friend has one and travels worldwide for business and that is the only reason that he has it.  I've seen first hand the perks when I took a trip with him across the pond.

It's not about the flash but about superior service.

---

But not everyone feels that way. It's about the flash. For me, its not about the flash.

[KJinNC]

Impressing people with signs of wealth (which a Centurion card and to lesser degrees, other Amex cards are) is a young man's game and if you really get into the psychology of it, it's probably hardwired and has to do with impressing women. At some point in your life and career, everybody in your peer group pretty much knows where you stand. At that point, anything that implies excessive spending is more embarrassing (indicates poor judgment to the people paying attention) than it is something you'd show off. At that point, you'd only have the cards if you think the math supports them, and you might even feel a little embarrassed sometimes to use them. Not to state the obvious, but anyone reading this probably know which part of this spectrum describes them This message is about the thread as a whole as this is a recurring theme, not directed at any particular person in the thread.

I really like Amex, for various reasons, but it is definitely not evidence of anything to have Amex cards. I can't get Chase cards (11/24). I don't know if I could get Citi cards. I was rejected last week by First National Bank of Omaha for a Ducks Unlimited card. But, I have four Amex cards including their second and third "flashiest" after Centurion. What does that say? For me, they are the easiest "top-tier" lender to get in with. Discover probably #2 in that measure.

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@redpat wrote:

Who gives a s..t about lower or high standards it's all about the rewards that a cards offer.  Where I live no one would care if someone pulled out a Centurion card or be impressed.  A good friend has one and travels worldwide for business and that is the only reason that he has it.  I've seen first hand the perks when I took a trip with him across the pond.

It's not about the flash but about superior service.

---

But not everyone feels that way. It's about the flash. For me, its not about the flash.

---

Right, and there are others where it's not about explicitly about the flash, but they get a card because they like the appearance.   I don't really understand this, but it's obviously real, and things like "it's metal" get mentioned here a lot, despite having no impact on rewards or service.

[redpat]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@redpat wrote:

Who gives a s..t about lower or high standards it's all about the rewards that a cards offer.  Where I live no one would care if someone pulled out a Centurion card or be impressed.  A good friend has one and travels worldwide for business and that is the only reason that he has it.  I've seen first hand the perks when I took a trip with him across the pond.

It's not about the flash but about superior service.

---

But not everyone feels that way. It's about the flash. For me, its not about the flash.

---

I hope Credit One comes out w/ a card that offers 5x dining, airfare, hotels, gas, grocery and a with Rakuten partnership that can be transfer to AA, Delta, Virgin, Avios, Hilton and Marriott.  That would be the only card that I would use

[Anonymous]

---

@KJinNC wrote:

Impressing people with signs of wealth (which a Centurion card and to lesser degrees, other Amex cards are) is a young man's game and if you really get into the psychology of it, it's probably hardwired and has to do with impressing women. At some point in your life and career, everybody in your peer group pretty much knows where you stand. At that point, anything that implies excessive spending is more embarrassing (indicates poor judgment to the people paying attention) than it is something you'd show off. At that point, you'd only have the cards if you think the math supports them, and you might even feel a little embarrassed sometimes to use them. Not to state the obvious, but anyone reading this probably know which part of this spectrum describes them This message is about the thread as a whole as this is a recurring theme, not directed at any particular person in the thread.

I really like Amex, for various reasons, but it is definitely not evidence of anything to have Amex cards. I can't get Chase cards (11/24). I don't know if I could get Citi cards. I was rejected last week by First National Bank of Omaha for a Ducks Unlimited card. But, I have four Amex cards including their second and third "flashiest" after Centurion. What does that say? For me, they are the easiest "top-tier" lender to get in with. Discover probably #2 in that measure.

---

None of my cards scream status. Lol.

[redpat]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@KJinNC wrote:

Impressing people with signs of wealth (which a Centurion card and to lesser degrees, other Amex cards are) is a young man's game and if you really get into the psychology of it, it's probably hardwired and has to do with impressing women. At some point in your life and career, everybody in your peer group pretty much knows where you stand. At that point, anything that implies excessive spending is more embarrassing (indicates poor judgment to the people paying attention) than it is something you'd show off. At that point, you'd only have the cards if you think the math supports them, and you might even feel a little embarrassed sometimes to use them. Not to state the obvious, but anyone reading this probably know which part of this spectrum describes them This message is about the thread as a whole as this is a recurring theme, not directed at any particular person in the thread.

I really like Amex, for various reasons, but it is definitely not evidence of anything to have Amex cards. I can't get Chase cards (11/24). I don't know if I could get Citi cards. I was rejected last week by First National Bank of Omaha for a Ducks Unlimited card. But, I have four Amex cards including their second and third "flashiest" after Centurion. What does that say? For me, they are the easiest "top-tier" lender to get in with. Discover probably #2 in that measure.

---

None of my cards scream status. Lol.

---

But your Sig does.......

[Anonymous]

---

@redpat wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

.

---

None of my cards scream status. Lol.

---

But your Sig does.......

---

Yes, but for real world use, a sig is pretty hard to use to impress.  "Oh, let me bring up MyFico on my phone and oh yes, there's my sig.   Let's just mouse over the cards to see the limits..."

[Anonymous]

---

@redpat wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@KJinNC wrote:

Impressing people with signs of wealth (which a Centurion card and to lesser degrees, other Amex cards are) is a young man's game and if you really get into the psychology of it, it's probably hardwired and has to do with impressing women. At some point in your life and career, everybody in your peer group pretty much knows where you stand. At that point, anything that implies excessive spending is more embarrassing (indicates poor judgment to the people paying attention) than it is something you'd show off. At that point, you'd only have the cards if you think the math supports them, and you might even feel a little embarrassed sometimes to use them. Not to state the obvious, but anyone reading this probably know which part of this spectrum describes them This message is about the thread as a whole as this is a recurring theme, not directed at any particular person in the thread.

I really like Amex, for various reasons, but it is definitely not evidence of anything to have Amex cards. I can't get Chase cards (11/24). I don't know if I could get Citi cards. I was rejected last week by First National Bank of Omaha for a Ducks Unlimited card. But, I have four Amex cards including their second and third "flashiest" after Centurion. What does that say? For me, they are the easiest "top-tier" lender to get in with. Discover probably #2 in that measure.

---

None of my cards scream status. Lol.

---

But your Sig does.......

---

Your cards do. I have a low-end Amex. Good scores, but anyone with old cards and a good payment history can get those.