Bought a $215 one way economy (not basic) ticket with work CC and added preferred seats, which were billed separately for about $40. I now want to fly from a different city, different day for personal matter. New ticket is $158 basic economy. Seems like it would be cheaper to just not use original ticket and purchase new ticket on my own (w/out pref seats). When I go through the change process online, the amount due is $174.

If I cancel original ticket, do I just get an AA credit for the $15 (orig price minus $200 change fee)? What happens to $40 seat fees? I'd rather the credit just go into my AA account rather than work CC b/c I will end up eating the new ticket price.