Ugh my CSR AF hit. Dunno if I should hold on to this card. I just got the amex business plat which gives me lounge access. I already have an ink business card where I have the ability to transfer points with. I eat out a lot so the bonus category for dining is really nice although I am trying to cut back on my dining out drastically. I already have a CS where I can get two points for dining out, so I could turn this card into a freedom unlimited. The other thing I use the CSR is travel expenses. I spend minimum 1.5k on travel a year and that doesnt include vacations/visiting family etc.
I have one or two large international trips coming up in the next few months, so i am wondering if that travel spend would offset my AF. I was going to use the amex plat for airfare purchases but now I am seeing that you need to buy the tickets via amextravel.com which most likely will not be the best price and therefore that spend would go on the CSR as well for the travel bonus points on top of any hotels I am not using points at. Maybe I should just downgrade my chase ink when that AF hits in a few months? I don't know what I will do about the amex plat after my first year. I like using it to get marriott status and I am going to be checking out a centurion lounge this summer and also need to access a delta sky club while in transit in atlanta, but who knows what the benefits will look like next year when the AF comes around again.
;
@redpatwrote:Renew and cancel CS the 1.50x ur redemption can come in handy. Only $55 more than CS.
Red, don’t be penny wise and pound fulish.
Actually my CS doesn't have an AF. The CSP has an AF, but since I already have a chase ink card I can transfer points anyway. Since the plat covers me for lounges etc I guess the only thing left is the bonus category points for travel and dining. So it would be one extra point for dining per dollar spend (since the CS will give me two points) and then two points extra for each dollar spend on travel. To offset the $150 fee I would need to earn 7,500 points in a year from those two bonus categories (and this is if I redeem for a value of at least .02 per point which isn't always possible). So either I need to spend 7.5k on dining in a year or $3,750 in travel or some combination of the two just to break even. Of course I know about the other CSR benefits but those seem to be mostly (if not entirely) covered by my other cards. Is my math off or is this pretty much accurate?
@UpperNwGuywrote:Keep the CSR. Cancel the CS, the Ink, and the Amex Plat immediately. The CSR is by far the best of those four cards, and it will show its value when you start really using it instead of dribbling your charges across those other cards.
I literally just got the amex plat and am using it for access to delta and centurion lounges on upcoming trips as well as hotel status with spg/marriott so i'm not canceling that for a year. The CS has no AF so I see no reason to cancel that. The ink card I have I think still offers the 5x points per category. I don't know if I can downgrade it and keep those categories but if I can I probably will do that. I agree that the CSR card is the best in the long run, but the hotel status from the plat is important. Eventually I will ditch the amex hilton card so then the hilton gold status will become useful from the plat as well.
@red259wrote:Ugh my CSR AF hit. Dunno if I should hold on to this card. I just got the amex business plat which gives me lounge access. I already have an ink business card where I have the ability to transfer points with. I eat out a lot so the bonus category for dining is really nice although I am trying to cut back on my dining out drastically. I already have a CS where I can get two points for dining out, so I could turn this card into a freedom unlimited. The other thing I use the CSR is travel expenses. I spend minimum 1.5k on travel a year and that doesnt include vacations/visiting family etc.
I have one or two large international trips coming up in the next few months, so i am wondering if that travel spend would offset my AF. I was going to use the amex plat for airfare purchases but now I am seeing that you need to buy the tickets via amextravel.com which most likely will not be the best price and therefore that spend would go on the CSR as well for the travel bonus points on top of any hotels I am not using points at. Maybe I should just downgrade my chase ink when that AF hits in a few months? I don't know what I will do about the amex plat after my first year. I like using it to get marriott status and I am going to be checking out a centurion lounge this summer and also need to access a delta sky club while in transit in atlanta, but who knows what the benefits will look like next year when the AF comes around again.
I'm actually contemplating PCing my CSP to CSR in the near future. I'm a little confused on the Amex Platinum language you used above. If you mean you have to use Amex Travel to get the 5x MRs per dollar, it's for travel booked through them or directly with any airline. I have been paying all airfare purchases (I almost universally book directly with airlines) through Platinum since that little perk started last March! Hotel bookings for 5x do have to go through Amex Travel. What I've come to realize with the CSR is that if you're transferring URs to an airline partner and not getting substantially better than 1.5 cpp, booking through Chase can actually be great value if the airline considers it to be a revenue flight earning miles (and if status is in play, the dollars and flights or segments that come with the flight).
@K-in-Bostonwrote:
@red259wrote:Ugh my CSR AF hit. Dunno if I should hold on to this card. I just got the amex business plat which gives me lounge access. I already have an ink business card where I have the ability to transfer points with. I eat out a lot so the bonus category for dining is really nice although I am trying to cut back on my dining out drastically. I already have a CS where I can get two points for dining out, so I could turn this card into a freedom unlimited. The other thing I use the CSR is travel expenses. I spend minimum 1.5k on travel a year and that doesnt include vacations/visiting family etc.
I have one or two large international trips coming up in the next few months, so i am wondering if that travel spend would offset my AF. I was going to use the amex plat for airfare purchases but now I am seeing that you need to buy the tickets via amextravel.com which most likely will not be the best price and therefore that spend would go on the CSR as well for the travel bonus points on top of any hotels I am not using points at. Maybe I should just downgrade my chase ink when that AF hits in a few months? I don't know what I will do about the amex plat after my first year. I like using it to get marriott status and I am going to be checking out a centurion lounge this summer and also need to access a delta sky club while in transit in atlanta, but who knows what the benefits will look like next year when the AF comes around again.
I'm actually contemplating PCing my CSP to CSR in the near future. I'm a little confused on the Amex Platinum language you used above. If you mean you have to use Amex Travel to get the 5x MRs per dollar, it's for travel booked through them or directly with any airline. I have been paying all airfare purchases (I almost universally book directly with airlines) through Platinum since that little perk started last March! Hotel bookings for 5x do have to go through Amex Travel. What I've come to realize with the CSR is that if you're transferring URs to an airline partner and not getting substantially better than 1.5 cpp, booking through Chase can actually be great value if the airline considers it to be a revenue flight earning miles (and if status is in play, the dollars and flights or segments that come with the flight).
Apparently there is a difference between the personal amex plat and the amex business plat. With the personal plat you can purchase directly from airlines and get 5x points with the business plat you need to book those flights through amex travel to get the 5x points.
@redpatwrote:
@K-in-Bostonwrote:
@red259wrote:Ugh my CSR AF hit. Dunno if I should hold on to this card. I just got the amex business plat which gives me lounge access. I already have an ink business card where I have the ability to transfer points with. I eat out a lot so the bonus category for dining is really nice although I am trying to cut back on my dining out drastically. I already have a CS where I can get two points for dining out, so I could turn this card into a freedom unlimited. The other thing I use the CSR is travel expenses. I spend minimum 1.5k on travel a year and that doesnt include vacations/visiting family etc.
I have one or two large international trips coming up in the next few months, so i am wondering if that travel spend would offset my AF. I was going to use the amex plat for airfare purchases but now I am seeing that you need to buy the tickets via amextravel.com which most likely will not be the best price and therefore that spend would go on the CSR as well for the travel bonus points on top of any hotels I am not using points at. Maybe I should just downgrade my chase ink when that AF hits in a few months? I don't know what I will do about the amex plat after my first year. I like using it to get marriott status and I am going to be checking out a centurion lounge this summer and also need to access a delta sky club while in transit in atlanta, but who knows what the benefits will look like next year when the AF comes around again.
I'm actually contemplating PCing my CSP to CSR in the near future. I'm a little confused on the Amex Platinum language you used above. If you mean you have to use Amex Travel to get the 5x MRs per dollar, it's for travel booked through them or directly with any airline. I have been paying all airfare purchases (I almost universally book directly with airlines) through Platinum since that little perk started last March! Hotel bookings for 5x do have to go through Amex Travel. What I've come to realize with the CSR is that if you're transferring URs to an airline partner and not getting substantially better than 1.5 cpp, booking through Chase can actually be great value if the airline considers it to be a revenue flight earning miles (and if status is in play, the dollars and flights or segments that come with the flight).
Not w/ biz plat, 5x is only through travel portal like 5x hotel on personal plat. I know it confuses the hell out of me too.
Yea i'm a bit pissed about this because I had believed it was going to be like the personal plat which I held in the past. I have a number of upcoming flights to book but I guess they will all go on the CSR now.