I want to cancel all but one of my AMEX's - will that blacklist if I do it all at once?

[wasCB14]

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@CreditJourney007 wrote:

@wasCB14 excellent point! Maybe I'll just move limits over and downgrade all, but cancel the PLAT. 

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Depending on the timing of your annual fee and the value you get from the card features, you might also consider PCing Platinum to a lower-AF card or asking for a retention offer. The rules around AF rebates and SUB eligibility are quirky.

[NRB525]

Which AF are hitting right now? Because unless the AF is posted, each of the cards with AF is not costing you anything extra. 

The AF can only be credited ( usually ) within 30 days of it posting. Once you get past that it is sunk cost. 

The desire to reduce number of cards may accelerate your decision, but the desire to keep open future SUB likely encourages a slower pace of closing. 

[wasCB14]

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@NRB525 wrote:

Which AF are hitting right now? Because unless the AF is posted, each of the cards with AF is not costing you anything extra. 

The AF can only be credited ( usually ) within 30 days of it posting. Once you get past that it is sunk cost. 

The desire to reduce number of cards may accelerate your decision, but the desire to keep open future SUB likely encourages a slower pace of closing. 

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If you downgrade (instead of close) outside of that 30-day window, is the AF still prorated?

[Namaste7]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@NRB525 wrote:

Which AF are hitting right now? Because unless the AF is posted, each of the cards with AF is not costing you anything extra. 

The AF can only be credited ( usually ) within 30 days of it posting. Once you get past that it is sunk cost. 

The desire to reduce number of cards may accelerate your decision, but the desire to keep open future SUB likely encourages a slower pace of closing. 

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If you downgrade (instead of close) outside of that 30-day window, is the AF still prorated?

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The AF is non-refundable after the 30-day window.

[Anonymous]

I am guessing SUB came with all these cards? If so i would take caution in closing them and making sure it's not done less than 12 months from opening. And I've read it's best to let AF post before shutting them down or downgrading. I'm not sure how Amex will react to multiple card closures, I suspect it won't look good on your CR to have that many closed in one month though. Not score wise but if it wnet to mnaual revire by an UW it might seem odd. IDK.

There must surely be a reason why these are not growing which perhaps should be taken up with Amex first, and then ultimatly closure if unable to get an movement. Moving CL's to one product and concentrating usage on that one might be the answer, and over time may be rewared with CLI's.

[CreditJourney007]

A sub came with the cards, but the annual fee doesn't hit until April, so they're 1.5 years old for two of them. The other two are 5 years old. Then the EVD is under 1 year, but again no intention of closing that. 

[sxa001]

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@CreditJourney007 wrote:

A sub came with the cards, but the annual fee doesn't hit until April, so they're 1.5 years old for two of them. The other two are 5 years old. Then the EVD is under 1 year, but again no intention of closing that. 

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So all of the AF's hit in the same month?  I would space out any closures if you can, you have quite a few months before they hit again.  There is no rush since you have until April to sort it all.  The two cards that are 5 years old there should be no worries, the other two I would probably wait and cancel after the AF's hit again, you might get lucky and get a good retention offer.  

[MrDisco99]

So I'll just start with this... General common knowledge says do not close any Amex accounts until they are a year old.  I would amend that to say do not close any Amex accounts until the first annual fee has posted to your account.  If you close right after that, they will refund the fee in full and you won't have to pay anything, so there's no cost to wait.  They may also make a retention offer to keep the card and get some kind of spend bonus to help offset the fee.  It's up to you whether you want to accept it or just cancel as planned.

If you cancel an account that is less than a year old, they may take adverse action like claw back points earned from signup bonuses.  Their terms say they reserve the right to do that.  Best to wait and make sure.

Assuming you follow that rule, Amex won't really care how many accounts you have open with them.  You can cancel all but one and they'll be fine with that, as long as the ones you cancel are at least a year old.

Also, as far as moving limits, Amex lets you move credit between cards once every 30 days.  You need to leave $1000 on the donor card when you do.  Once you've moved credit from one card, you won't be able to move from another card until 30 days later.

EDIT: I just saw where you said they are all over 1 year old, so you should be fine closing them.  If you intend to move credit, though, you may need to hold on to them long enough to move as much as you can to the card you intend to keep.