Originally Posted by
cloudeleven
Getting an Amex at 23 might be hard, especially if you managed to avoid student debt and car loans in college like I did. I'm 30, have had an MC credit card for 12 years and a Visa for 5 years with perfect payment history, 770 FICO, and I was still shot down recently for the Citi personal Amex with the 75k AA bonus miles due to not having a "diverse enough" credit history. All I had was 2 credit cards on my CR, they wanted to see additional types of debt like loans or mortgage. Not a platinum card either, just the Citi Select AAdvantage Amex.
I guess I'd suggest diversifying your credit history beyond credit cards with a loan or mortgage. At least if you want an Amex.
Not sure I'll ever be able to get an Amex since I hate loans and like renting, at least not a Citi AAdvantage Amex.
American Express did not deny you this credit card. Citibank did. The Citi AAdvantage Amex is a fairly recent trademark/licensing agreement between the two, but Citibank is/was completely responsible for deciding whether to give you the card.