Morgan Hamilton asked:
Are you in the market for credit card transfers? Without question balance transfer offers hold the potential for cardholders to realize substantial savings. Note that I used the word potential here. When contemplating transferring a balance from one card to the next, there are several factors to take into account.
First and foremost you are going to want to familiarize yourself with the terms of the offer. You can do that by reading the disclosure statement, which is sometimes also referred to as the terms and conditions. There you will find all the important details including information about the interest rates, fees and payment periods, credit limits, etc.
Oftentimes credit card transfers will be advertised with a 0% or low APR introductory rate. These will be offered for usually 6 months and sometimes up to 12 months. They can be a great deal if you are currently carrying a balance on a high interest rate card. But you also must look past that as well.
When I say look past that I mean you have to know what the interest rate is going to be when the introductory rate expires. If you are going to aggressively pay down your current balance then finding a 0% APR or low interest rate credit card transfers is a fantastic way to pay off the principal while being charged little or no interest.
However, many people make the mistake of either forgetting or not realizing that the predetermined interest rates on the offer will kick in when the introductory period ends. Be sure that you know exactly what those rates will be before you transfer your balance.
Be honest with yourself and question whether you will be able to pay off your balance in full before the introductory period expires. If you do not believe that you will be able to pay it off then you have to make sure that the interest rates will be affordable and not excessively high.
Compare those rates with what you are paying now and that will help you determine if doing a balance transfer is in fact in your best interest. You also must take into account any and all fees that are charged such as annual fees, late fees, and so on. All these factors determine how much your credit is going to cost you.
And finally, and this is very, very important, you must know what the balance transfer fee is going to be. Most major issuers now charge a fee to transfer balances from one credit card to another. It usually ranges in the neighborhood of around 3% of the total to be transferred but it can be higher or lower depending upon the offer.
Jesse
Are you in the market for credit card transfers? Without question balance transfer offers hold the potential for cardholders to realize substantial savings. Note that I used the word potential here. When contemplating transferring a balance from one card to the next, there are several factors to take into account.
First and foremost you are going to want to familiarize yourself with the terms of the offer. You can do that by reading the disclosure statement, which is sometimes also referred to as the terms and conditions. There you will find all the important details including information about the interest rates, fees and payment periods, credit limits, etc.
Oftentimes credit card transfers will be advertised with a 0% or low APR introductory rate. These will be offered for usually 6 months and sometimes up to 12 months. They can be a great deal if you are currently carrying a balance on a high interest rate card. But you also must look past that as well.
When I say look past that I mean you have to know what the interest rate is going to be when the introductory rate expires. If you are going to aggressively pay down your current balance then finding a 0% APR or low interest rate credit card transfers is a fantastic way to pay off the principal while being charged little or no interest.
However, many people make the mistake of either forgetting or not realizing that the predetermined interest rates on the offer will kick in when the introductory period ends. Be sure that you know exactly what those rates will be before you transfer your balance.
Be honest with yourself and question whether you will be able to pay off your balance in full before the introductory period expires. If you do not believe that you will be able to pay it off then you have to make sure that the interest rates will be affordable and not excessively high.
Compare those rates with what you are paying now and that will help you determine if doing a balance transfer is in fact in your best interest. You also must take into account any and all fees that are charged such as annual fees, late fees, and so on. All these factors determine how much your credit is going to cost you.
And finally, and this is very, very important, you must know what the balance transfer fee is going to be. Most major issuers now charge a fee to transfer balances from one credit card to another. It usually ranges in the neighborhood of around 3% of the total to be transferred but it can be higher or lower depending upon the offer.
Jesse