Trying to capture those 35k bonus miles, help appreciated
 

Hello all,

I was looking to apply for the Amex gold delta card (the standard offer when you book a flight on delta's website). However, I was unsure of the best way to proceed, given my situation below:

I'm a recent college grad, and built up strong credit through using a silver Amex delta sky miles card. I've had it since 2007. The card has my name on it, but it's still under my parents' account (so they received the Amex points while I paid them each month for my credit card expenses). This card does NOT give me a free checked bag on delta flights, however.

So essentially, I've got a delta sky miles card with zero personal perks. That's gotta change...ASAP. :D

For those who've been in a similar situation, what's the best way to maneuver? Do I first cancel the current worthless sky miles card I have, then try to apply for the gold card? Because as of now, the current Amex sky miles card I have prevents me from picking up ANY bonus miles if I applied for the Delta/Amex gold card.

Any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated!

If you're not the main cardholder (which is sounds like you aren't since you don't get any perks), then you can get bonuses for any card since you haven't had it before as a main cardholder. There's no reason to "cancel" the card that your parents are the main cardholder and you're an additional cardholder. Go to deltaplatinumoffer dot com and key in your SM number and last name and see if you're targeted for a better DL Am Ex.

Don't go crazy applying for tons of cards till your credit has had more time to age, but 1 or 2 is no big deal.

BTW, War Eagle.

I don't think you will have trouble either getting the card, or getting the bonus. However, you might want to contact Amex and make sure your SSN is attached to your current card. When my wife moved to the USA, we put her SSN on my Amex account on which she was an additional cardmember, and suddenly she had a 750 credit score and they thought her oldest card dated to 1995.

If you apply on the phone be sure to get the bonus code. Amex often does not give bonuses for applications taken over the phone. Yes, same card, same offer, same requirements, but they won't give the bonus for phone applications.