CSP now, then upgrade to CSR next year

[Anonymous]

Hi,
I was just hoping to get some advice/thoughts/feedback from the forum.

My ultimate goal was to get the CSR next year around April and planned to garden until then (should be 4/24 by then). Family is planning to do Disney World vacation at the end of next year. I noticed that both the CSP and CSR currently have the same SUB. I recently opened a Chase account a couple of days ago and banker told me I was pre-approved for CFU, Slate, CSP and CSR. I declined at the time. But the more I thought about it (and trying to make a quick decision as I don’t want the preapprovals to disappear), I’m thinking i should go for the CSP now, hoping the preapproval in branch allows me to get around the 5/24 rule, with the first AF waived, then upgrade to CSR when it makes a year.

My reasoning would be that I would rather do the 4K spend in 3 mos without having to pay an additional $450 for an AF on top of it. Makes sense hopefully :-)

What do you guys think??

[iced]

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@Anonymouswrote:
Hi,
I was just hoping to get some advice/thoughts/feedback from the forum.

My ultimate goal was to get the CSR next year around April and planned to garden until then (should be 4/24 by then). Family is planning to do Disney World vacation at the end of next year. I noticed that both the CSP and CSR currently have the same SUB. I recently opened a Chase account a couple of days ago and banker told me I was pre-approved for CFU, Slate, CSP and CSR. I declined at the time. But the more I thought about it (and trying to make a quick decision as I don’t want the preapprovals to disappear), I’m thinking i should go for the CSP now, hoping the preapproval in branch allows me to get around the 5/24 rule, with the first AF waived, then upgrade to CSR when it makes a year.

My reasoning would be that I would rather do the 4K spend in 3 mos without having to pay an additional $450 for an AF on top of it. Makes sense hopefully :-)

What do you guys think??

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This is fresh on my mind because it was just discussed in another thread. The short and quick version is if your dining/travel spend is below about $10,000/year, you're probably better served with your plan to start with CSP and upgrade later. If you do spend more than that amount each year on dining/travel (and of course are planning to move that spend to the new card), then the CSR is a better value right out of the gate, even with the AF.

How and when you plan to redeem rewards (travel portal vs. airline transfer partners) may adjust that value upward or downward.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the advice iced! Makes a lot of sense. Do you remember what thread it was that was mentioning this?

[Anonymous]

Hey Green1120,

I think your idea is good, but I want everyone to be able to get the SUB for every card for which they apply. Currently Chase doesn't allow anyone to have more than one Sapphire card, unless they were grandfathered prior to the change. That means the only ways to get the CSR after the CSP are either:

1.) Your way -- upgrading

2.) An opportunistic method -- Downgrade your CSP, to a non-Sapphire card and then apply for the CSR. This is actually what I plan to do in 2020.

Getting the 2nd SUB is the catch, and why I'm waiting to make my moves. As of today, Chase will not award a bonus to anyone who received a Sapphire-related SUB in the 24-month period prior to their application for another Sapphire card.

In short, if you want the CSR SUB, then you'll have to wait two years after getting the bonus for your CSP and downgrade your CSP in order to apply for the CSR, and maybe a Freedom or Freedom Unlimited to combine inquiries, and get ready to enjoy your bonus!

Although if you just want the experiences and priveliges offered by the CSR, then just upgrade; but I think that you deserve the SUB, especially if a vacation will get you there!

[iced]

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@Anonymouswrote:

Hey Green1120,

I think your idea is good, but I want everyone to be able to get the SUB for every card for which they apply. Currently Chase doesn't allow anyone to have more than one Sapphire card, unless they were grandfathered prior to the change. That means the only ways to get the CSR after the CSP are either:

1.) Your way -- upgrading

2.) An opportunistic method -- Downgrade your CSP, to a non-Sapphire card and then apply for the CSR. This is actually what I plan to do in 2020.

Getting the 2nd SUB is the catch, and why I'm waiting to make my moves. As of today, Chase will not award a bonus to anyone who received a Sapphire-related SUB in the 24-month period prior to their application for another Sapphire card.

In short, if you want the CSR SUB, then you'll have to wait two years after getting the bonus for your CSP and downgrade your CSP in order to apply for the CSR, and maybe a Freedom or Freedom Unlimited to combine inquiries, and get ready to enjoy your bonus!

Although if you just want the experiences and priveliges offered by the CSR, then just upgrade; but I think that you deserve the SUB, especially if a vacation will get you there!

---

It will ultimately be up to the OP in this case, but blindly chasing a sign-up bonus isn't always the best option for everyone. That second sign-up bonus comes with another new account and the lowering of AAoA associated with such an act. Not a big deal to some, but for someone with a thinner file and/or shorter history, it can have a more significant skew that will take years to age.