I don't think it's the paying for tickets that gets you the status. After all, many people have said that they attain 1K for $3500 with "smart mileage runs."

You want the status, then fly. If you're not flying that much anyway, then what does it matter if you have status or not? This is not meant to sound anything but curious. Why should UA give you and others status when many of us actually PAID and FLEW this year and made the status without a comp?

Of course, if you read other posters here, you'll see that UA is comping many people. So, per usual, hang up, call again until you get the answer you want.