Over the summer I wrote about some SPG new credit card benefits which accompanied an annual fee increase. In an earlier post I had wondered if the SPG credit card changes and fee increase was worth the perks.

I feel that deciding the value of paying a credit card annual fee has a lot to do with each individual. I could see arguments made both ways for those changes made to the SPG card.

Back in July I called in for a retention offer on my SPG Business Card. Since the fee just hit on my personal card, it was time to call in and see what I might be offered.

I called in and within a minute or so I was chatting with one of the reps. I explained how I was thinking of closing my card due to the annual fee. I was immediately told that there were no promos to waive the annual fee but she’d take a look.

Just before being placed on hold, I was told that she’d “touch base with the team”

After a bit of a hold, I was transferred to an account manager.

I explained the situation once again and the manager said he’d hate to see me go…

Soon after, I was told that he could assist me by offering a $25 credit.

I thought it over and was close to closing my account. I then stopped him and asked the manager how long I had to decide. Once you pay the fee, you could still cancel your card for up to 60 days.

I thought the scenario over for a moment, going back and forth about what I should do. Then the rep said that the credit makes the annual fee just $5 more than in the past.

I decided to keep my Amex SPG card open for now. I figured that with the $25 credit, that brought the fee down to $70. If I include a couple of Amex Offers that I plan to take advantage of, this would be another way to save $20 more.

If I stop here, my fee would come to $50 for the year due to the credit and Amex Offers.

My guess would be that I’ll come across a bunch of other Amex Offers for my SPG card, hopefully making the fee come to $0 (or hopefully a profit) for the year!