Hey all,
I just completed a massive spree about three months ago. My file is fairly thin and I have been keeping with the mindset to garden for at least 12 months. During my spree, I was unable to get a travel card and I would benefit from one very much. I log on to Amex and I see that I have been pre-approved for an Amex Gold with 50k SUB for 4k spend.
On the other hand, I was thinking of applying for the same card but the business version in order to prevent the new tradeline and to build up my business profile. I already have a Blue Business Cash about 4 months old. The only thing with that is that I would like to use it for business and would not like to mix business and personal at all. (So there goes my answer, right)
Does this seem worth coming out the garden for or should I just use what I have currently? I am planning quite a bit of travel within the next three months and this is what really piqued my interest. What say you, MF family?
How much you spend at grocery and dining per month?
and how do you plan to use 50k MR?
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@FortifiedHM wrote:How much you spend at grocery and dining per month?
and how do you plan to use 50k MR?
Very great questions! I spend about $800 monthly on groceries and dining out. The reward points will be used for redeeming travel, gift cards, and/or hotel stays.
Recent spree? I would suggest sticking with your plan to garden for a year.
The 50k MR SUB is nice, but it is not uncommon. A year from now, you will find it again.
While the AMEX Gold has some travel protections and is great at earning for travel, its not much of a "travel" card. It isn't going to give you status or lounge passes. The 50k offer is has been there since the dawn of time so I wouldn't feel rushed unless for some reason you were banking on that 50K to travel.
I won't aruge, its a great card. I put all of my spending on it to get those sweet, sweet MRs. (Although I am currently sleeping with Miss UR 
) But its always going to be there and AMEX is much less sensitive to opening of other accounts. If you find that your upcoming travel can be a way to easily hit the 4K spend, then its probably a good time. But depending on how many accounts you have opened recently, it might be time to let them age for a bit.
@NRB525 wrote:Recent spree? I would suggest sticking with your plan to garden for a year.
The 50k MR SUB is nice, but it is not uncommon. A year from now, you will find it again.
Yeah, I see. I really thought it was something special. Thanks so much for the input!
@MusicLovah7 wrote:
You already have BCP. Do you spend more than $6k in groceries? If the majority of the $800 a mth u spend is on restaurants then maybe gold is worth it. Maybe you should get the Amex Green which has lower AF and if you get the incognito offer you can get 45K MR sub for $2k spend I think. You should find the MR calculator on the Amex site and then decide if you want Green or Gold. It’s all dependent on what you think MRs are worth to you. I personally prefer cash back since I don’t travel that much to make collecting MRs worth the additional spend. I’m sure everyone will say garden but it’s your life. If you think you can spend enough to get the Gold sub in 3 mths and it works better for your spend, then go for it.
Well actually I have the Blue Cash Magnet. I wish I had the BCP because I would definitely use that for the grocery spend. I am using my SunTrust Rewards for the grocery at the moment. I was thinking about the green but the only reason it came to my mind is because of the offer that popped up. I was going to go for the Delta Gold because of the upcoming travel and thought that Amex Gold was better than Delta Gold. I'm going to think on it more but I know it would benefit me to get some type of travel card in the near future. Thanks for your breakdown, it helped alot!
@Sage512MB wrote:While the AMEX Gold has some travel protections and is great at earning for travel, its not much of a "travel" card. It isn't going to give you status or lounge passes. The 50k offer is has been there since the dawn of time so I wouldn't feel rushed unless for some reason you were banking on that 50K to travel.
I won't aruge, its a great card. I put all of my spending on it to get those sweet, sweet MRs. (Although I am currently sleeping with Miss UR
Bingo! That's what I figured. I really was looking at the Delta Gold for those kind of benefits but I seen the offer and said maybe this would be better. Now I see my initial plan was better. I honestly believe the Platinum would probably benefit me as well, a lot of travel happening. But I'm really not using the lounge access because most flights are nonstop and I don't spend anytime in the airport. I heard that Platinum is best for lounge perks. The spend is not a problem. I would be actually using these cards as daily drivers in order to use the MR for travel and lodging. Yes I opened about 10 new accounts this year and that is why I'm apt to sucking it up and using my debit until the accounts age. 