Time to change my credit cards?

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Topic Author
jb3
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Time to change my credit cards?

Post by jb3 »

I'm reviewing my credit cards and thinking of making some changes:

Current cards:
1. Amex Gold Rewards
Pros: 30+ years of good credit history
Cons: annual fee, poor rewards

2. Citibank Mastercard Cash Back
Pros: 20+ years of good credit history, no fee
Cons: only 1% cash back

Most of my cc spending is on groceries or misc. items.

Ditch Amex card? Keep the Mastercard? Try something new?

Thanks for any input.
mhalley
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by mhalley »

You might call Amex and see if they will switch you to blue cash or blue cash preferred card. I think Amex offers back dating, (but I an not 100% sure) which would preserve your length of credit history. Certainly reasonable to try to get a no fee card. Have you figured how much you make or lose each year using the Amex? You also might run some scenarios through creditkarma to see what cancelling the Amex would do to your fico score.

http://www.thesimpledollar.com/best-cas ... dit-cards/
Last edited by mhalley on Sat Jan 09, 2016 12:54 am, edited 1 time in total.
DSInvestor
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by DSInvestor »

You can call citibank and ask them to switch your mastercard to a double cash mastercard which has 2% cash back (1% for purchase, 1% for payment).
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Jags4186
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by Jags4186 »

What type of rewards are you looking for? This will help people give you better suggestions. As for what you currently have...

Amex Gold isn't worth having. At minimum you should upgrade to the Premier Rewards Gold. It costs $20 more a year but you get more bonus earn categories plus you get $100 airline rebate a year (I consider this good as cash) so it's only $95/yr instead of $195/yr.

Citi--you should definitely upgrade to the double cash, 2% cash back vs 1%.
Topic Author
jb3
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by jb3 »

I would like to save on groceries. I use my cards on that the most.

Will check out creditkarma, thanks.
Ninnie
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by Ninnie »

Since groceries are your primary concern, it's simple. Get the Amex Blue Cash Preferred.

6% back on groceries up to the first $6000. Also 3% back on gas and department stores, and 1% back on everything else.
Yes, there's an annual fee, but it pays for itself before you reach the $6000 in groceries.
If you don't want an annual fee anyway, the Amex Blue Cash has no fee, and gives you 3% back in groceries.

Call Amex and see if they will switch you. Your history should carry over to the new card. Even if it doesn't and if they don't switch you, just open it as a new card. Their website is offering $250 back right now for opening the card, so make sure to mention that when you call.

No, I don't get anything from Amex for this promotion. :D
I just don't know why anyone would get a different card if groceries are their main form of spending.
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midareff
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by midareff »

Agree on seeing if AMEX will switch you to Blue Cash Preferred. 6% back on first $6K spent at stand alone grocery. Citi has a 1% + 1% cash back Mastercard. Fidelity has a 2% cash back AMEX which I have heard is being replaced by a 2% cash back Visa. PenFed has a 5 back on gas card. Discover has 5% rotating categories.

Most companies.. electric, phone, insurance, etc., will bill direct to a credit card. We did >$2100 last year on cash back. :moneybag
Topic Author
jb3
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by jb3 »

The Amex Blue Cash Preferred looks great with 6% back on groceries.

Should I be worried about losing the credit history on my Amex Gold? Will try to transfer it but may not be possible.
mhalley
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by mhalley »

If you are not planning on taking out a car loan or mortgage in the next 2 years you should be fine. You could run the scenario on creditkarma as I mentioned before to get an estimate of the effect.

https://www.creditkarma.com/
Topic Author
jb3
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by jb3 »

I called Amex. They cannot transfer me from my Gold to the Preferred Blue rewards card. I would have open a new account for the Blue and then close my Gold account.

I don't want to "lose" 30 years of good credit history on my Gold card.
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FireflyGlow
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by FireflyGlow »

jb3 wrote:I called Amex. They cannot transfer me from my Gold to the Preferred Blue rewards card. I would have open a new account for the Blue and then close my Gold account.

I don't want to "lose" 30 years of good credit history on my Gold card.
That's weird that they won't let you switch. I got my first Amex, the Gold card, in 2003. I switched from that to Amex Platinum, then to Delta Skymiles Gold, then to Delta Skymiles Platinum. Since it is all the American Express bank (Centurion bank); my current card says "Member Since 2003."

I would call back and ask for a manager. That doesn't sound right to me. The Blue Cash Preferred is issued by Centurion Bank, right?
Ninnie
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by Ninnie »

The credit industry tries to scare people into not closing old accounts, but it's not that big of a deal.

You have to decide your comfort level with this, but we had no problem closing our oldest card (20 years old) last year and our credit rating was unaffected. Keep in mind that the history stays on your credit report for 10 years before it drops off.

Keep the Citi card, which has a 20 year history and no annual fee. Keep it in a drawer and don't use it. By the time the Amex Gold drops off your credit history, the Citi will be 30 years old.

First open the new card and wait until you have it activated and are using it. Hopefully you will have a comparable credit limit on the card than you do with your Amex Gold. Once that is done, cancel the old Amex.
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FreeAtLast
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by FreeAtLast »

Ninnie wrote:Keep the Citi card, which has a 20 year history and no annual fee. Keep it in a drawer and don't use it. By the time the Amex Gold drops off your credit history, the Citi will be 30 years old.
I recommend that he uses the Citi card at least twice a year so they don't cancel it on him.
Illegitimi non carborundum.
Spirit Rider
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by Spirit Rider »

jb3 wrote:I called Amex. They cannot transfer me from my Gold to the Preferred Blue rewards card. I would have open a new account for the Blue and then close my Gold account.

I don't want to "lose" 30 years of good credit history on my Gold card.
Call back and see if you apply for and open a Preferred Blue rewards card and then cancel the Gold card, will your original age be reported?
Yossarian
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by Yossarian »

Amex used to backdate, but they stopped this past year.

Are there any other no-AF cards they could downgrade you to? It would suck to lose that long a credit history, as it would cut your average age of credit by half. But if your credit score is otherwise solid that may not be that big a deal.

I would definitely get the Amex BCP. You can use it for gift cards sold at grocery stores to get 6% off of gas, restaurants, etc.
metsmetsmets
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by metsmetsmets »

Sallie Mae Visa from Barclay. 5% on groceries, 5% on gas, 5% on Amazon, 1% all other stuff.
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midareff
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by midareff »

jb3 wrote:I called Amex. They cannot transfer me from my Gold to the Preferred Blue rewards card. I would have open a new account for the Blue and then close my Gold account.

I don't want to "lose" 30 years of good credit history on my Gold card.
Than don't close that card when you open the next one.
SteelCityMD
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by SteelCityMD »

jb3 wrote:I called Amex. They cannot transfer me from my Gold to the Preferred Blue rewards card. I would have open a new account for the Blue and then close my Gold account.

I don't want to "lose" 30 years of good credit history on my Gold card.
American express usually only "converts" downwards for cards of a similar type in my experience (charge card w/ membership rewards). I think your only bet for a downgrade of the gold card is to go to the green charge card:

https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/

Green has 95 fee. WIll save you 100 bucks a year though if length of credit is that important to you. What's your score now? It probably won't drop significantly.
dore
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by dore »

metsmetsmets wrote:Sallie Mae Visa from Barclay. 5% on groceries, 5% on gas, 5% on Amazon, 1% all other stuff.
This version of the card is no longer available.
Topic Author
jb3
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by jb3 »

I want to close the Amex Gold because it costs $150/year.

Just don't want to lose the history.
mhalley
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by mhalley »

Here is an article that discusses how length of credit history affects the credit score. It is only 15% of the score. would say if you are not getting a new car or mortgage in the next 2 years to just close the account.
http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-c ... dit-score/
ft2010
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by ft2010 »

jb3 wrote:I'm reviewing my credit cards and thinking of making some changes:

Current cards:
1. Amex Gold Rewards
Pros: 30+ years of good credit history
Cons: annual fee, poor rewards

2. Citibank Mastercard Cash Back
Pros: 20+ years of good credit history, no fee
Cons: only 1% cash back

Most of my cc spending is on groceries or misc. items.

Ditch Amex card? Keep the Mastercard? Try something new?

Thanks for any input.
Check how many Amex membership rewards points you have and decide if you wish to keep them going forward. Consider getting the no fee version of Everyday card to retain those points -- there is also sign-on bonus points for getting new cards. The no fee Amex Everyday card earns 2x on grocery spending. Check approximately how much you spend on groceries, and compare to the Amex Blue Cash Preferred to see if it's worth the annual fee.

Call Citi to see if they can convert your existing card into Double Cash card. If not, retain the existing card with Citi and put small purchases on it every 6 months or at least once per year (to prevent account becoming inactive and inadvertently closed by the bank. This is a card you want keep for that long credit history without paying an annual fee.

There are many cash rewards and separately travel rewards credit cards with sign-on bonuses if you are open to applying for new cards. There are dedicated threads here already discussing best travel credit cards as well as threads about best cash rewards credit cards. Its worthwhile for you to go thru those threads. Many people consider the sign-on bonuses as most rewarding -- keep in mind that those often require paying attention to meet the spending requirements in the first few months in order to receive the bonus.
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TheGooch
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by TheGooch »

dore wrote:
metsmetsmets wrote:Sallie Mae Visa from Barclay. 5% on groceries, 5% on gas, 5% on Amazon, 1% all other stuff.
This version of the card is no longer available.
metsmetsmets wrote:Sallie Mae Visa from Barclay. 5% on groceries, 5% on gas, 5% on Amazon, 1% all other stuff.
That sucks, it's my favorite card for groceries since it has no annual fee unlike the BC preferred card.

You can get blue cash standard if you don't want the annual fee and don't spend much on groceries.

And like other have said, "switching" is misleading. You should keep your old accounts open and add the new one. Buy something with the old ones 1-2 times a year to keep the accounts active. I have several accounts like this to help keep my avg account age score higher.
Spend Less Than You Make For Goodness Sake
Topic Author
jb3
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by jb3 »

If Amex keeps the "member since" date on the new Blue card I open, does that mean my Gold history is intact?
2tall4economy
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by 2tall4economy »

Get the Citibank 1+1 noted above or get the capital one spark cash at 2%. I prefer the spark due to fx fee avoidance.

That's all you'll ever need.
You can do anything you want in life. The rub is that there are consequences.
ft2010
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by ft2010 »

jb3 wrote:If Amex keeps the "member since" date on the new Blue card I open, does that mean my Gold history is intact?
No, not necessary. I have several Amex cards carrying a member since date from my first AMEX card 20 years ago but none was converted from that initial card. If you are so determined to preserve you existing AMEX gold credit history, you need consult Amex on exactly whIch cards they allow such feature. Actually, I just saw you had posted similar question back in 2012, the fact that you are still undecided to either switch or get new cards, is telling that the credit history is probably a main concern of yours. Only Amex can answer this particular question.

On the other hand, even closed accounts stay on one's credfit file for many years. For people already have 10+ and 20+ years of credit history documented, I doubt having 30+ years make a significant difference in credit worthiness.
takeshi
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by takeshi »

jb3 wrote:Most of my cc spending is on groceries or misc. items.

Ditch Amex card? Keep the Mastercard? Try something new?
If rewards are a priority then find cards that maximize rewards on your biggest spend categories. If groceries and noncategory spend are your biggest them you might want to consider the Blue Cash Everyday or Blue Cash Preferred and a 2% card for noncategory spend. Run the numbers for your spend. The 2% noncategory card may not offer much more in rewards versus a card that offers 1% on noncategory spend. Both of the Blue cards I mention offer 1% on other spend.
jb3 wrote:I don't want to "lose" 30 years of good credit history on my Gold card.
Is that history worth it to you to continue paying the AF of the Gold?

Keep in mind that closed accounts typically remain on your reports for 10 years and continue to factor into your Average Age of Accounts while they are on reports. You can also see if you can PC to charge card with a lower AF if you want to keep it. See if the Senior Green is still available (you don't have to be a senior).

As others have pointed out, Length of Credit History is typically ~15%:
http://www.myfico.com/crediteducation/w ... score.aspx
jb3 wrote:The Amex Blue Cash Preferred looks great with 6% back on groceries.
Run the numbers for your spend and consider the AF as well.
jb3 wrote:Should I be worried about losing the credit history on my Amex Gold? Will try to transfer it but may not be possible.
Your call to make. I don't keep anything open that is of no use to me. If you don't share my preferences and priorities then that won't be relevant to you. My FICO 8's are all over 800 without refusing to let go of old accounts. They're not close to 850 but that's fine with me. Best terms are generally offered at 740-760 with FICO 8.
jb3 wrote:If Amex keeps the "member since" date on the new Blue card I open, does that mean my Gold history is intact?
The MSD on the Blue would have nothing to do with the history of your Gold card since the Blue would be a new account. AmEx no longer backdates so your MSD will not be reported as the year you opened the Blue. It will report the date that you opened it. If you want to keep the history of the Gold card you need to either keep it open as is or convert it to another product.
mhalley wrote:You might call Amex and see if they will switch you to blue cash or blue cash preferred card. I think Amex offers back dating
They won't PC from a charge card to a credit card. Or from a credit card with one rewards program to a credit card with a different rewards program. Backdating was ended March of last year. My wife actually applied for the Platinum before the cutoff but the card was approved and opened after cutoff so it was not backdated.
mhalley wrote:You also might run some scenarios through creditkarma to see what cancelling the Amex would do to your fico score.
Credit Karma provides VantageScore 3.0, not FICO's. Even FICO simulators cannot simulate all FICO models. Additionally, CK's Average Age of Accounts only considers open accounts. FICO includes closed accounts on reports. CK can be a useful tool but it has its caveats.
Ninnie wrote:I just don't know why anyone would get a different card if groceries are their main form of spending.
Main form of spending doesn't necessarily mean the same amount of spend. Different levels of spend can lead to different solutions being better suited to a given individual. If one can leverage MR points and the swipe bonus, one of the Everyday cards could be a better fit.
metsmetsmets wrote:Sallie Mae Visa from Barclay. 5% on groceries, 5% on gas, 5% on Amazon, 1% all other stuff.
Several recent threads suggest this card but it is not available to new applications. See also the Sallie Mae site. It's 5% on bookstores, not Amazon. Some but not all Amazon charges qualify. There are caps as well. One has to consider whether the caps suit one's spend levels. Sallie Mae's grocery caps are too low for our grocery spend. The Blue Cash Preferred has a cap as well but it is higher at $6K/year.
surfstar
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by surfstar »

OP, do you actually NEED that long credit history?

Are you planning on taking out a mortgage or car loan in the near future? Will a dip in credit score by 10% even matter?

People can be too fixated on their credit number and not the utility of it.

Just think of all those years of annual fees you've paid, "to keep your credit history". Cut the cord!

Get the Amex Blue Cash, then cancel your gold card. Get the Citi Double Cash and use that for non gas and grocery purchases. Then you're set. (call and threaten to cancel your Amex BC each year and you may get the AF or portion of it waived, also)
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powermega
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Re: Time to change my credit cards?

Post by powermega »

Remember that accounts that you close stay on your credit file for years after you close it. The credit history considers that too.
Even a stopped clock is right twice a day.
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