What would be the first AMEX to try for and at what EX score

[spiritcraft1]

Don't need to apply now.  Ex was at 642 FICO08 last night but went down 12 points today due to having a card report zero.  I was at 17% UTI That reported due to not being able to pay a charge off as it hit on statement day last month.  Now at about 2%.  Ex nails me every time I report below 9% while the other two do the opposite.  Getting off topic here...

Just curious at what score to try to join the club.  And... what card is the usual suspect?

All bad stuff, CO's and three CA's 6 years old now.  Perfect history for 3 + years and never had an Amex (aside from a corporate card in the 1990's but that was not my account)

[AverageJoesCredit]

660+ is prferable but Amex is all over the place nowadays. You might even get one at 642. Never know til you try

[wasCB14]

It's the only issuer where people decide they want one before knowing what products they offer!

What airlines do you fly? What hotels do you stay at? How often?

Or do you not travel much?

[spiritcraft1]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

It's the only issuer where people decide they want one before knowing what products they offer!

What airlines do you fly? What hotels do you stay at? How often?

Or do you not travel much?

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Thanks.  We have been far too busy to travel for the last few years due to rebuilding our business (after commercial slumlord took us down).  We actually are taking a trip next month, first in 6 years, all paid via CC  "points".  Too bad "travel cards" don't include marinas though the gas for our 1967 wooden cabin cruiser is a large yearly bill!

We do eat out a quite often now.  I am looking at AMEX to then get into a Business card.  We have one business credit card that was the only one left standing at a local CU with a $5k limit that we sometime fill up and pay off 3-4 times a month.  (easy 200k a year)  We are getting 1% on that.  

Short story, we could rack up some points personally and especially for the business.

INQ's are not an issue but am stingy with them.  I have 2 on EX and 6 over all.

[Anonymous]

Well in more recent history on these boards, the no annual fee Hilton Honors and the Delta Gold cards seem to be gateways for many, myself included. Amex tends to hold fairly common approval requirements across their tiers, in that preapproval for one cobranded card generally means you could get any of them (possibly excepting the Delta Reserve and Hilton Aspire, as they’re premium cards with premium fees). Next tier up, higher than cobranded, is usually the charge cards, with Green/Gold/Platinum holding around the same requirements. Finally, the most strict level would be the core revolvers like BCE, BCP, ED, EDP, Cash Magnet, etc.

I got in with the base Hilton and Delta Gold with a 638, picked up Hilton Surpass in the 640s, and grabbed BCP and Gold at 656. These are significantly lower than historical Amex approval scores, but others in the past year or so have reported similar success. My first two were cold-app approvals, and the other three were taken off of preapprovals.

The caveat to my first two is that while they were approved, it was for a $1000 SL each and neither has grown yet. Amex May let you in below a 660-670 but you may not get as much to work with. The closer to 700 you are, the better.

As always, YEMV. Every profile is different and scores are probably not even the most important factor in approval.

[AverageJoesCredit]

One doesnt need to travel to have or want an American Express.

[spiritcraft1]

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@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
One doesnt need to travel to have or want an American Express.

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That is true AJC!  In our case, taking smaller salaries and trying to build our business is unique in that we could certainly enjoy the points as a bonus.  I am only looking for an in as our scores and reports will be pretty much stellar in about a year and 2 months and improving until then.

[spiritcraft1]

I would be fine with a $1k limit to start as that would start building some history with them.   For business side, a Gold Card would be great as we PIF for all that anyway.  

[Anonymous]

Agreed that travel isn’t required - the kicker is that travel-aligned cards are typically the easiest. If it comes to Hilton vs Delta, I’d more often than not recommend Hilton, as most of us probably stay in a hotel more often than we fly.

Gold is a terrific daily driver for sure. The earning categories are easy to use and the points pile up. I’d definitely look at getting one if you can justify the AF. Since dining is a 4x category, you could make use of it.

Be sure to check for prequals too. Not having them doesn’t mean you’d be denied but they do lend some assurance when you see them.

[spiritcraft1]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Agreed that travel isn’t required - the kicker is that travel-aligned cards are typically the easiest. If it comes to Hilton vs Delta, I’d more often than not recommend Hilton, as most of us probably stay in a hotel more often than we fly.

Gold is a terrific daily driver for sure. The earning categories are easy to use and the points pile up. I’d definitely look at getting one if you can justify the AF. Since dining is a 4x category, you could make use of it.

Be sure to check for prequals too. Not having them doesn’t mean you’d be denied but they do lend some assurance when you see them.

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Yes, likely more Hotels aside from perhaps a trip or two a year to make up for lost time.  Doing nothing but work for a few years in a row is tiring.  

I will look into them a bit more.   I would take pretty much any of them to get started.

Our biggest spending, by far, will be on the business side but need to get my foot in the door.  Unlike personal, Biz credit is perfect and aging nicely.