"Sooooo Tempted....."
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express Review
Written by: wildrage2 on 2008-08-07
Overall Satisfaction
Customer Service
Rewards
Account Management
Delivery Time
wildrage2's review: 
I received an 'invitation' to apply for this card in the mail today. I'm enrolled in the Starwood Preferred Guest Program (Sheraton brand), and I don't know if they pre-screened me for this or not. They call it an 'invitation' and gave me an 'RSVP number.' My scores have only just started hitting the 640 range, so I don't think I'll be applying for this one... But it's SOOOOOO tempting. The AF is only $45, waived for the first year, and you get enough points for something like 3 free nights just for using the card once.
I'm guessing a 640 FICo is too low to start applying for this bad boy... But can anyone that has it review it? Or give me an idea of what FICO you need for it? I'll just be over here sitting on my hands keeping myself from applying!
I received an 'invitation' to apply for this card in the mail today. I'm enrolled in the Starwood Preferred Guest Program (Sheraton brand), and I don't know if they pre-screened me for this or not. They call it an 'invitation' and gave me an 'RSVP number.' My scores have only just started hitting the 640 range, so I don't think I'll be applying for this one... But it's SOOOOOO tempting. The AF is only $45, waived for the first year, and you get enough points for something like 3 free nights just for using the card once.I'm guessing a 640 FICo is too low to start applying for this bad boy... But can anyone that has it review it? Or give me an idea of what FICO you need for it? I'll just be over here sitting on my hands keeping myself from applying!
7 Comments
Comment 1 by danny
Apply If.. 
on 2008-08-07
... You do not have any prior bk, no charge offs or lates and do not have excessive inquires. Those are the reasons why AmEx declined me a couple of weeks ago. Otherwise I would go for it.
on 2008-08-07 ... You do not have any prior bk, no charge offs or lates and do not have excessive inquires. Those are the reasons why AmEx declined me a couple of weeks ago. Otherwise I would go for it.
Comment 2 by mark
Be Careful About Invitations. on 2008-08-07
Invitations means nothing..
Pre-approved sounds better... But in the real world, if your scores dropped significantly from the time they did a credit score check, you won't be approved either..
my vote, don't apply. It's not worth the inquiry..
wait a few months, you'll definitely receive similar invites in the mail
on 2008-08-07 Invitations means nothing..Pre-approved sounds better... But in the real world, if your scores dropped significantly from the time they did a credit score check, you won't be approved either..
my vote, don't apply. It's not worth the inquiry..
wait a few months, you'll definitely receive similar invites in the mail
Comment 3 by arod
Wait ! on 2008-08-07
I agree with Mark wait... You will have this card in time..
I would say wait..
Good Luck,
Alex
on 2008-08-07 I agree with Mark wait... You will have this card in time..I would say wait..
Good Luck,
Alex
Comment 5 by colleen
Approved on 2008-08-28
I applied for this card today and was approved. I have a FICO of 646. I was approved with a $1500 CL.
on 2008-08-28 I applied for this card today and was approved. I have a FICO of 646. I was approved with a $1500 CL.
Comment 6 by bucky7007
Give It A Try on 2008-12-07
I was instantly appr for 10 grand, credit scores 680 range. I believe the key here is your history with amex. I have a rewards gold charge card with them, spent big money on lawyers fees over past year. I paid the balance monthly with my money market acct. I had the money, used the card for points, and was instantly apprvd for starwood and blue. They don't like you to leave high balances on your cards, Use them and pay them!!
on 2008-12-07 I was instantly appr for 10 grand, credit scores 680 range. I believe the key here is your history with amex. I have a rewards gold charge card with them, spent big money on lawyers fees over past year. I paid the balance monthly with my money market acct. I had the money, used the card for points, and was instantly apprvd for starwood and blue. They don't like you to leave high balances on your cards, Use them and pay them!!
Comment 7 by irene1182
My Favorite Card on 2009-01-22
I have no idea what it takes to be approved, but I just wanted to throw in my 2 cents about this card. Its absolutely my favorite of all the cards I've used, both Amex and others.
Basically, once you start using the rewards, you realize how much more value it has than other cards. for 10k points, you can get a night at a $250-$300 hotel (think Westin, high end Sheraton, low end W), Sheratons for 3-7k points (3k is much more rare), but NO BLACKOUT DATES on anything. Last winter, I went to cancun and used 10k points for Le meridian, where prices were $700! Compare that to 25k on airline cards that will get you a $300 flight... And good luck finding open seats on one of those. If you still want airline miles, you can tranfer 20k starwood points into the same # of miles, plus they give you a 5k bonus!
I probably sound like a Starwood salesperson, as I have also convinced my mom, dad, sister, sister's boyfriend and 2 friends to get this card, but I'm truly convinced its the best rewards program out there.
on 2009-01-22 I have no idea what it takes to be approved, but I just wanted to throw in my 2 cents about this card. Its absolutely my favorite of all the cards I've used, both Amex and others.Basically, once you start using the rewards, you realize how much more value it has than other cards. for 10k points, you can get a night at a $250-$300 hotel (think Westin, high end Sheraton, low end W), Sheratons for 3-7k points (3k is much more rare), but NO BLACKOUT DATES on anything. Last winter, I went to cancun and used 10k points for Le meridian, where prices were $700! Compare that to 25k on airline cards that will get you a $300 flight... And good luck finding open seats on one of those. If you still want airline miles, you can tranfer 20k starwood points into the same # of miles, plus they give you a 5k bonus!
I probably sound like a Starwood salesperson, as I have also convinced my mom, dad, sister, sister's boyfriend and 2 friends to get this card, but I'm truly convinced its the best rewards program out there.
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Disclaimer: This content is not provided by American Express. Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by American Express. Review content is powered by Finance Globe.
