American Express is home to probably one of the most exclusive and sought after Charge Cards in existence, the Centurion Card – commonly referred to as a black credit card. I really didn’t know all the details about the card until I happened to find a blog dedicated to the American Express Centurion Card. It turns out a lot more people have the card than I thought and its level of exclusivity has fallen since Amex has begun allowing current cardholders to request an upgrade to Centurion.

John Chow just did a feature of a 21 year old Centurion Card holder Neil Patel. The difference about Neil’s card is that he doesn’t pay the $5000 initiation fee, $2,500 annual fee or the monthly charges he racks up. They are paid for in full by the company who’s board Neil sits on. That is one great perk!

The qualifications, for those of you striving to get a Centurion Card, are being an American Express cardholder for at least one year and charging an average of $250,000 annually to your card(s). Beyond that, the only thing standing in your way is a phone call to Amex to request the upgrade to Centurion and the fees associated with your new card.

Many Centurion cardholders have stated that the level of service they receive is not on-par with the expectations American Express sets forth in its marketing materials and that the perks associated with the card are more for show than any utilitarian value. I wouldn’t mind having that personal concierge to get me into sold out shows, sporting events and high end restaurants without a reservation – but I don’t live that lifestyle at the moment so it’s a moot point.

For those of you who don’t quite qualify for the Centurion Card, go to InstantCredit.cc to find a card suitable for your needs.

[tags]american express, black card, centurion card, amex, shaun carter, annual fee, platinum card, gold card, no limit, john chow, neil patel[/tags]