Thread: Amex for bad credit?

Does anyone know what is the lowest credit score you can still get approved for an American Express with? I already have a Visa, Mastercard and Discover (though it is a store card) and i don't need any more of those.

I really would like to get an American Express but don't know if I'd qualify with a 670 credit score. I had a bankruptcy in the past (circumstances outside of my control) and have been working hard to rebuild my credit ever since.

Your thoughts? Can you get an Amex with bad credit history and bad score?

Don't think Amex will ever issue you a card because of your past bankruptcy. Or at least not until the bankruptcy is completely removed from your credit report. Individual creditors' comments regarding bankruptcy fall off after 7 years, as they are negative items, but the public information entry only after 10 years. I'm actually surprised that Discover even gave you one. They are also known as being real bankruptcy unfriendly.

(Disclosure: We are advertising partners with American Express)

Well technically speaking, there are no such thing as American Express "bad credit" cards. As you know, AmEx is known for being extremely picky when issuing credit. But although there isn't an American Express for bad credit, a number of forum members have reported great success in getting approved for their new Zync card. There are posts from 18 and 19 year olds, those with credit blemishes, etc. that reportedly are getting approved recently for this card. To find out more, check out the American Express Zync review.

Originally Posted by gimmecredit

does anyone know what is the lowest credit score you can still get approved for an american express with? i already have a visa, mastercard, and discover so i don't need any of those. i really would like to get an american express but don't know if i'd qualify with a 670 credit score. i had a bankruptcy in the past (circumstances outside of my control) and have been working hard to rebuild my credit ever since.

Of course you will get one. You aren't able to file bankruptcy for the next seven years. If you do have a 670 Fico and not a 670 Experian Score I am sure they will approve you on an Amex. After the first year of filling bankruptcy you get new credit card offers after the second year you can get a mortgage. The Mortgage may be tough in the current financial situation but somehow you can do it. You just have to make sure that your Fico is 670 and not your Experian. 670 Experian is equivalent to 580-585 Fico. Please note that this is only the case if the Experian Score was issued under the Experian Plus Scoring Model.

Originally Posted by gimmecredit

does anyone know what is the lowest credit score you can still get approved for an american express with? i already have a visa, mastercard, and discover so i don't need any of those. i really would like to get an american express but don't know if i'd qualify with a 670 credit score. i had a bankruptcy in the past (circumstances outside of my control) and have been working hard to rebuild my credit ever since.

Issuing credit is based on more details than just the credit score, but I can tell you that with a score lower than 650 you will get automatically declined unless you have current positive American Express history. Of course with the recent credit crunch that number may have changed. I don't work in Risk, so I don't know for sure. All I know is that I very rarely see a new card member get approved with a credit score lower than 650.

I'm a little surprised that people believe someone could get approved even with a bankruptcy. I know from experience that Amex will NOT approve if you have a bankruptcy because I've been there.

It had been nearly 8 years since I filed Chapter 7 and I had 2 more to go before it was completely off my credit reports. My credit score by this time was about 670-680. The main reason for the denial was the bankruptcy.

When I applied for the green card I actually thought, as I'm sure many others have as well, that a charge card would be easier to get approved for. I was surprised that I got denied especially because I was getting cards from major banks by this point.

It's been about 2 years later now and my bankruptcy has finally fallen off my credit reports. I just received a pre-approval from Amex for the green card in the mail. I called it in and finally got approved!

Anyways, my best advice would be to wait until THEY contact you so you don't get dinged on the credit report. I have read many reviews about people applying for Amex and looks like majority of people who receive a preapproval letter DO get approved (this is not the case with Chase Bank which sends "invitations to apply" not genuine preapprovals). In my experience, people with fair credit usually get denied automatically (especially online) when they initiate an application on their own.

I got an Amex Plat card with a pretty bad credit score. But I had at the time won my state lottery. After waiting till the money was deposited, I called Amex CS and spoke to a Michelle. Very nice....

Amex did a very through background and banking check on me. Once they confirmed I had the funds I had claimed, they approved me for a Zync card for 6 months (Probationary period) I opened a small saving account with them as well and 8 months later I received my Platinum card in the mail. Its 450 per yr which may be a little high for some but I love the exclusivity of having it and the small perks (ie Airport lounge accesses).

My plan is to use this card a lot and pay it off every month to be in good standing and I will see an invite to the Centurion card soon.. I am sure with the money I now have they would welcome me with open arms. Trust me when I say, credit isn't the only criteria...You must speak to a live person. My score was lower than a 670 and here I am with a Plat card now.... Hope this helps and inspires you. Go get that card.....good luck....

I had really bad credit right after college. I had racked up about 3k in credit card bills, including some of that on my amex, and couldn't pay anything for several months. All of the cards were eventually cancelled by the cc companies, including the Amex, even though I paid everything back. It took me about 2 or 3 years before I could get a new credit card. The first card I was able to get was a CapitalOne with a $300 limit. I slowly built up to a Discovercard after another 2 or 3 years.. and then a few years after that I was able to get the Amex back.

Don't believe all of the "I don't think you can get the X card" with bad credit, because you can. It just takes time building your credit back up. As for bankrupcy, I'm not sure, but if it's just from a bad payment history, I have first hand experience that you can build it back up.

I have very bad credit right now, and honestly, it'll probably take 1-2 years before my credit is fixed. Is there any way at all to get an Amex?

I have a bunch of collections, charge offs, judgements, and a tax lien (totaling 20 negative items on my credit report) -- LOL, sounds like a stupid question I'm asking I know.

Point is, can you even get approved for an Amex with negative items on your report? Or is it impossible? How many negative items have you seen on a credit report and someone get approved?

Obviously I'm doing everything in my power to remove the negative items from my credit report and pay of all collections.

Andrewfashion,

With 20 negative items on your credit report, I would say the chances of getting approved are zilch. You need to work on building a better history up before you should even try.

However for everyone else who has borderline credit on the cusp of being fair credit, then I would advise you try checking if you are pre-selected for any AmEx offers. This is a new feature that uses a soft credit pull only. That means you have nothing to lose with checking, since the inquiry won't affect your credit score. Please note though if after checking you are pre-selected for an offer and then choose to complete and submit the full application for a card, then a normal hard credit inquiry will be performed by American Express.

Good luck.