The Master Why Apply for New Amex Cards in January Thread

[mendelssohn]

There are usually a lot of questions about why to apply for new Amex cards in January, particularly this time of year. Below is a brief explanation.

 

When you have an Amex log in, you have a "Member Since" date. For example, here is what mine looks like when I log in to my account.

 

 

Once you have established a "Member Since" date, every new Amex you open will show as being opened in the MS year. For example, every Amex I open reports as being opened in 1992. A new Amex will report the month that it was opened with the MS date as the year.

 

For example, let's assume a MS date of 2013 and two different scenarios for opening a second card.

 

MS date 2013

Amex 2 opened December 2014

Amex 2 reports as opened December 2013

reports as 1 year old

 

MS date 2013

Amex 2 opened January 2015

Amex 2 reports as opened January 2013

reports as 2 years old

 

If you have a really young MS date, you can see why applying in January can help you boost your AAOA over time. Waiting 1 month in this example nets another year of account age.

 

If you don't have an Amex, it is wise to get one before the year ends to lock in a MS date.

 

If you have a young MS date, it is wise to wait until January to take advantage of the account age as much as possible.

 

 

 

[mendelssohn]

And FYI, for those people looking for their first Amex, the approval criteria are the same for the Green, Gold and PRG charge cards. IMO you are always better off going with the PRG for the bonus and no AF in year 1 and you can downgrade it in year two to the Green if you want.

[ubercat]

Thanks for spelling it out for me.

 

Salud!

[Losluv]

Great post! Thanks for the info on the PRG - when I'm lucky enough to get back in with AMEX I now know what to go for and when to do!

[mendelssohn]

The January strategy doesn't add too much when you have an old MS date, but it can help you build and stabilize your AAOA if you do it with a fairly new date.

[Losluv]

Had a Green back in 1989. It shows up as the MS on my AU card. I will keep my fingers crossed that it will be my MS on my future card... if they ever let me back in. LOL!

[mrage]

I'm glad I figured this out before it was too late! Got my 2014 MS locked in and will be applying for 2 more Amices in January.

 

Great thread idea, as I had not previously seen this spelled out so explicitly and had to dig for the answer as to why January gave an advantage... I had wrongly assumed the D* would result in subsequent cards being approved the same year AND month as the first.

 

My oldest CC is from April, so when I open new Amices in January, it will help my aging. I'll keep adding them religiously every January.

Edited October 25, 2014 by mrage

[shifter]

What about the Master Why To Apply For Your First Amex In December thread?

[Allisson0605]

Great Thread, well explained.

Thanks.

[mendelssohn]

What about the Master Why To Apply For Your First Amex In December thread?

"If you don't have an Amex, it is wise to get one before the year ends to lock in a MS date."

 

I think that has it covered.

 

Obviously if you don't have an Amex by December and have been waiting to apply for your first card, DO IT!!!

 

You always want to get the earliest MS date possible, but there's no reason to wait until December.

[BobWang]

The Few

 

The Proud

 

The BISKs

 

[mendelssohn]

[JayB27]

The Few

 

The Proud

 

The BISKs

 

Those few are a blessing to have around.

 

They've certainly earned their titles....thank you for this thread mendelssohn and all your contributions.

Edited October 25, 2014 by JayB27

[Pixicredit]

And this is why we love mendel... I was waiting to apply till January for my FIRST amex. Didn't realize I needed to get started already! Thanks!

[mendelssohn]

Someone asked me to comment on churning Amex cards to pad your AAOA. Remember that AAOA is open AND closed accounts, and that closed accounts can report up to 10 years after they're closed.

 

For personal cards, you can have up to 4 revolvers and one of each type of charge card.

 

Keep adding cards until you at least hit the max for revolvers. Cancel 1-2 every year or two and replace them with new cards.

 

In the end, you add a lot of "old" cards if you do it right. Just do the calculations to make sure you will actually be helping your AAOA.

[neck2navel]

What if I've been an AU on an AMEX? Can I apply this January and get the MS date back dated? Thanks for all your wisdom Men.

[mendelssohn]

What if I've been an AU on an AMEX? Can I apply this January and get the MS date back dated? Thanks for all your wisdom Men.

Do you have your own log in already?

 

Piggybacking D* is dead, so it's based on your own log in only.

[LoLoLo]

What if I had an amex few years ago but no log in? (Wasn't doing online banking then) will I get it reported as new or MS?

[mendelssohn]

They may find you in their system and you don't have to do anything or you may have to put in a request for it.

 

Either way, D* to your own closed account is NOT dead.

[LoLoLo]

And then adding my wife as AU would d* her report too, right?

[mendelssohn]

And then adding my wife as AU would d* her report too, right?

Nope. There's no way to do that anymore.

[LoLoLo]

So opening a new amex and doing d* would report for me as an old card and for my wife (AU) as a new card?

[mendelssohn]

AUs always report as new cards anyway, but no, you can no longer D* from another person.

 

She needs to establish her own MS date.

[LoLoLo]

Thanks

[LoLoLo]

Thought that was only if the main cardholder tried to d* his card according to the AU's MS date, guess I was wrong :-(