Just over a year ago, I blogged about opening a Schwab brokerage, checking account, and Amex Schwab Platinum credit card with the goal of maximizing the number of $200 airline credit on the American Express Platinum card which runs on a calendar year schedule.
My December statement just closed and it’s showing the $550 renewal fee for the card. Time to close this baby out. I was hoping for a bit more maneuvering time, but it should be sufficient since you always get 30 days to cancel and get an annual fee refund. So long as I close out the card by January 16th, the fee will get refunded. Reports are that you can close out an Amex card via chat; that makes it simple.
Cancelling the card is not for everyone: some value the 1.25% redemption benefit enough that – alongside all the other Platinum benefits – it’s worth keeping this card long term. But for me, I think that value won’t meet the cost of the annual fee.
Readers recently let me know that the Amex Schwab card can’t be downgraded to anything else. That was news to me – I’d vaguely been planning on downgrading the card to a Green card; apparently, that’s not possible with the Schwab Platinum card since it’s a co-brand.
The downgrade factor is important because cards which are downgraded get their annual fee prorated even after the 30 day mark. Since the Schwab Platinum card can’t be downgraded, you have just 30 days to decide if you want to cancel or to swallow the full $500 fee.
To-do list before closing out the card:
- Spend $200 toward the airline incidental credit in January when the credit renews (see what counts here). Of course, you can still meet the 2018 credit as well, but I’d assume everyone has already done that.
- Spend $50 at Saks for the new $50 Saks credit. I just did an order two weeks ago for the 2018(b) credit, and the $50 credit posted two days later. I bought some kitchen knives, not sure what I’ll buy in January with the 2019(a) credit.
- Do your final 1.25 cents cash out to your Schwab brokerage account.
- The Uber $15 January credit should load automatically on January 1st, so there’s nothing to be done for that.
For those who never had the Schwab Platinum card, see this post Opening a Schwab Brokerage, Checking, and Amex Platinum Credit Card before Year’s End. It’s similarly a good time for many of the other cards which have an airline credit, see Year-End Credit Card Checklist for 2018: Travel Credits, Spend Reset, Application Strategy & More.
Closed my Schwab Plat account today at the 13 month mark. I could not justify the AF. CSR did try to make a case for keeping the card by asking me about the Airline credit, Uber, and Sak’s, etc. I told her the truth, I used the airline credit and Sak’s, but they were not something I needed, just used them because I had them. I had no use of the Uber credit. She even mentioned that some people use the Uber credit for Uber Eats, which my response was I don’t have Uber Eats in my area. I was going to ask if that is supposed to work that way, but I decided to keep the call short.
She pulled up my account and offered an incentive to stay. $200 statement credit for $3K spend within 90 days. I declined. My quick math was 1 more $100 air credit and $100 of overpriced junk from Sak’s, plus the $200 bonus, did not equal $550.
They offer to mail you an envelope so you do not have to destroy the card yourself. I thought that was funny, but they do explain not to destroy the card in a paper shredder or a scissors.
Correction to my math. Would have been $200 more in air credit.
Still a no-go for me, but if Uber credit was something I actually used, it would have been a tougher decision. Also notice the retention offer was for a statement credit, not 20,000 in MR. That’s a $50 difference.
Is there any requirement on how long MR points redeemed for Schwab “cash” needs to stay in the Schwab account? I may get this card for a year, but don’t currently plan to keep it (or the Schwab account) long term.
Once you cashed out MR’s to Schwab, it’s your money… you can withdraw it. I don’t recall exactly but maybe took a couple days to show up as available.
Applied for the Platinum Schwab card and received this message ; “based on your history with American Express welcome offers, introductory APR offers, or the number of Cards you have opened and closed, you are not eligible to receive this welcome offer.” even though I have never had the Platinum Schwab AMEX card. It let me cancel the application before submitting it.
So, I messed up and miscalculated and am in an interesting situation. My 30-day mark is today, but I only realized today and just made the airline credit purchases now. Does anyone know if I will still get them if I now cancel the card, given that by the time the credits would post (2-3 days from now or so), the card will be cancelled?
Alternatively, does anyone know if it is a hard 30 days with AMEX and they won’t budge and I’ll be stuck with the whole $550, or if they will be okay with 33 days (for some issuers there is a built-in grace period, e,g, 37 days or 40 days)? If so I will wait until the airline credit posts before cancelling. the tough part is, since it’s the Schwabb Plat there is no downgrade option to get the fee prorated after 30 days. Thanks in advance!
On the same boat. did you get the airline credit?
I was charged 550$ in my first month statement, Is the fee not waived for the first year ? Please let me know
It was charged correctly.
No issues that I’m aware of.
Probably i will be the unicorn DP for this. I had both vanilla and Schwab Plat cards. Both had AF hit. 2 months back got Retention offer for Vanilla. Called in today to ask what my options are for the schwab as well as vanilla, i was surprised that they gave a retention offer of 15K pts for $2k spend on the Schwab. I had originally planned to downgrade the vanilla to gold and keep Schwab. But, with this surprise offer, i am keeping both for now.
FWIW- never cancelled any of my Amex cards in my long history with them.
Just closed my wife’s Schwab Plat card. No retention offer given, even after specifically asking if there were any retention offers. We’ve cashed out all of her MR points to Schwab. Maybe we’ll apply for it again after building up a big point balance once more.
Disappointed in the lack of offer though.
This article saved me!
I have an Amex Ameriprise that the annual fee just hit on. Thought I’d be able to use the 2019 benefits and then downgrade the card to Green. Apparently not!
Called to cancel and got a decent retention offer… $200 credit after $3k spend. Decided to keep the card and use the benefits. I think there’s a Gold card I can downgrade to, and if not, well I at least break even.
What about Mercedes Plat -> normal plat -> gold card?
Merc plat is changing on Jan/10.
I have already received the bonus for PRG so downgrade works for me.