Compare different balance transfer credit cards. By switching to a balance transfer credit card you can consolidate all your credit card debt and save money. There are a variety of credit cards that offer incentives to switch and move your debt to them, some may even include 0 APR interest rates.
When used properly, a balance transfer credit card can offer a breath of relief almost immediately by reducing your monthly payments and interest. The following tips will help you on a road to better credit, and finding a credit card that’s the best fit for you.
– The key benefit of balance transfer credit cards is that with one card you can transfer over all of your credit card debt and thus reduce your payments to one per month as opposed to a number of payments with varied due dates and interest rates.
– In addition to making just one payment a month, a balance transfer credit card can come with introductory 0% interest for 9 to 18 months, even 21 months in some cases, offering further relief by not having you incur additional debt from interest.
– You need to be aware that most cards carry with them a transfer fee in the range of 3-5%. Some may offer a 0% transfer fee if the transfer is made within a specified amount of time.
– You can take a trade off between a longer intro-period (i.e. 18 months as opposed to 15) versus the transfer fee (5% compared to 3%) versus the ongoing APR.
– Be aware too that some incentives like extended intro-periods can also apply to purchase APR to encourage you to use the credit card on new purchases.
– Balance transfer credit cards can also be used to help you pay off other large purchases such as car or home appliances with credit card checks from your issuer.
– Even if you don’t have a balance to transfer over, you can still take advantage of the extended intro-periods and 0 APR by using the card to make a large purchase then pay it off in a more relaxed pace.
– You can transfer the balance from your existing cards by following the instructions from your new issuer which may be as simple as a phone call, online, or by using convenience checks provided by the issuer.
– Make sure to make at least the minimum payments to your balance transfer card issuer and do not abuse the new credit card.
– Do not assume that the process is complete once you make the request to transfer your balance to the new issuer. It make take as long as a few weeks for the process to complete. In the meantime you are still responsible for any payments and fees that may be necessary during the transfer process.
