What does AMEX want from me?

[Anonymous]

It has been almost a year since I received my first Credit Card (Disco Secured) and begun to rebuild my credit.

Just recently I received pre-approvals for the Amex Green Charge and BCE cards and following some verification I received approval for both.

Ultimately AMEX offers many things I would like to work towards that fit my lifestyle including additional cards and programs.

My questions are how can I utilize my cards (the BCE w/ $500 limit and Green Charge Unknown) to best build my relationship with AMEX. Specifically I am looking for signficantly higher limited and additional card offers in the future.

I have the means to use the full limit of both cards and pay off several times for month however I am not sure AMEX views this spending.. Does it not matter if both cards are PIF every month? I have no plans nor need to carry a balance on either card. I simply will be using them to foster the relationship with AMEX.

Any advise is appreciated!

[Anonymous]

    The BCE should be used every month since it's most likely in the credit steps program that Amex offers. Did you get an e-mail about potentially increasing the limit after 5 months of timely payments? 

[Shadowfactor]

It doesn’t seem to matter to Amex if you pay and recycle your credit limit many times a month. Amex loves useage so anything that enables more swipes of their cards (within reason).

But it does matter if you pay in full with the Amex Green charge card you have. If you don’t pay in full. You will get charged late fees and they will close your account. It’s a charge card. It has to be paid in full every month unless Amex offers you POT

[Anonymous]

You can earn a higher credit line on your new Blue Cash Everyday® from American Express. Simply follow the steps below for each of your first five statements:

“Use your Card. You must have a balance due each month.
Pay at least the minimum due on time each month.”

This was the body of the email however in the fine print it states you will receive the CLI after 5 months.

I’m assuming with proper usage after paying in full each month that I would still be eligible for the 3x limit increase after 60 days?

[Shadowfactor]

If you got the email from Amex with those terms. You will not receive a 3X CLI on your 61 day. Instead you will receive a 2X CLI after your 5th statement and completing the terms on the email.

If you mean that you will be able to get a CLI after 61 of your “credit steps” increase. That’s YMMV but I doubt it.

Normally the 61 days CLI is 61 days after account opening but since you are on “credit steps” you will not qualify for that most likely

You must :
Pay atleast the minimum due
Let the card report a positive balance on the statement end date. Once the statement cuts you can then pay in full.

[Anonymous]

Does it matter what amount the card reports when the statement cuts? I typically Pay in full before the statement cuts (so that it reads $0 for utilization purposes and I pay no interest).

For example...

Charge $450
Pay $440 1 day before statement
Let $10 report and then PIF

Credit steps seems to have some intricacies..

[Shadowfactor]

The situation you laid out would be acceptable as far as I know. I’ve never been on the “credit steps” program with Amex.

But just so you know,
You won’t be charged interest until the due date of the card.

So if your due date is the 10th of the month and statement end date is the 15th of the month.
You can charge $40 on the 6th of the month, have your card end the statement on the 15th and that $40 won’t be due or accrue interest until after the next due date. ( provided you paid in full the previous month)

[NRB525]

Congrats on the new cards.

The Green should not affect your score, so that one you would use, let the statement print with whatever balance, then pay the statement amount by the due date. I have my PRG charge card on auto pay, so whatever is on the statement, AMEX takes that 17 or 18 days later. Just ensure cash is in your checking and you will have no issues.

Using both cards consistently will build your internal score with AMEX and eventually lead to some CLI.