Credit Card Balance Transfer Tips

Eliminating high interest credit cards by transferring to a card with a lower rate can help you save a great deal of money, allowing you to regain control of your finances. However, it is important that you understand all of the terms and conditions of your new credit card before committing enrollment. You want to make certain that the card offer is fair and that you are truly going to benefit from it. Featured are tips that will help you choose and use the right credit card for transferring balances.

Pre-determining interest rates

Most balance transfer offers are good for only the first 6-9 months of enrollment. At the conclusion of the introductory rate, the card will convert to a more standard rate, typically between 14-20%. It is important that you determine what the interest rate is going to be once the intro rate is over. If you are not sure what interest rate the card is going to be charging at the conclusion of the intro offer, call the issuer and find out.

New purchase interest rates don't equal the balance transfer rates

The intent of transferring credit card balances is to obtain a lower interest rate and eliminate your debt quicker. It is important to note that the balance transfer interest rate is not going to be the same for new purchases made with the credit card. In fact, new purchase rates are going to be higher. Also, payments that you make towards your credit card bill are going to be applied towards the balance transfer debt first, until they are eliminated. As a result, you are going to end paying a lot of money in interest costs for new purchases. It would be wise for you to pay off all of your balance transfers prior to making any new purchases with your credit card.

You should also be aware that many issuers will apply the introductory rate to new charges only. Therefore, you will end up paying the full standard interest rate on your balance transfers, defeating the purpose of saving money while eliminating your debt. Obviously these type of card offers are not ideal for balance transfers and should be avoided.

Know what fees are associated with transferring balances

It is very likely that you are going to be charged a percentage when transferring credit card balances. This fee is usually 4-5%, with a $35-50 cap. Unfortunately, many credit card issuers have decided to eliminate the cap; resulting in consumers having to pay hundreds of dollars when transferring $1500 or more. Even worse, this fee is often considered a new purchase, meaning you pay a high interest rate for this portion of your card's balance. Therefore, you should look to apply for a credit card that offers caps on balance transfer fees and costs.

Be alert of bait-and-switch schemes

Offers are not always what they seem. Suppose your credit score is 550. It is likely that when you submit a request for a particular card offer, that the issuer presents you with an offer that is geared more towards people with bad credit. Specifically having a higher interest rate and no introductory offer. You can get approved, and not even be informed that the approval is for a different credit card. You probably won't even realize until after you receive your first statement. Therefore, it is crucial that you read the terms and conditions of the card you are approved for before you transfer any of your balances, or make any new charges.

Don't be late on your payment

It does not matter if you are one day late or ten days late. Being delinquent on your payment will result in you losing your introductory offer!

Jacob Joseph is a financial expert for http://www.starloanservices.com. At Star Loan Services you can apply for credit cards for people with bad credit

Balance Transfer Tips

The most expedient and convenient way (but not necessarily the most effective as we shall see later) of reducing the interest on your card is to get balance transfer, which basically means paying off one card with another. Obviously you need another card to do this and there is really no objection to this (unless you simply must abuse it.) Of course cards with no annual fee are best, but even a small annual fee is okay when you're saving more anyway. The number of card offers these days that have low or no interest periods makes this fairly easy. Here are a few things to take note of:

1. Balance transfer offer periods usually start on the card activation date, not the date you actually do the transfer. Once this period (usually about 6 mouths) is finished, the remaining transferred amount and any further transfers revert to the standard balance transfer rate.

2. Balance transfers at a later stage are still useful to eliminate cash out interest that may have been 'sandwiched' between purchase transactions. Learning not to get cash out is a good move in the long-run, but this will solve those impulse hiccups.

3. Transferring a whole card account balance frees your initial card to enable you to make use of the 'interest free days' or 'grace period' facility. (See Report.)

4. Depending on the credit card company's policy, you can do balance transfers over the phone, online or only by having a form sent out and sending it back. This last takes longer of course (though you could use fax if you're in a hurry) so allow for this extra time. On new card applications this is rarely a problem anyway as they'll ask you during the application process whether you want to do one (or you can wait until your card is activated if you like.)

William Ember is author of the Credit Card Conqueror Report which provides detailed and practical plans on how to save money on credit card interest and other charges (and in some cases pay none at all!) The report is available free from his website

Credit Card Balance Transfers - 0% Introductory Offers

Balance transfers have grown in popularity and importance ever since lenders have started using zero per cent interest rates on balance transfers to lure consumers from other companies to their own.

Introductory Offers

These 0% balance transfer offers give the customer a very low, or zero per cent interest rate on any sum transferred from another credit card, over to them. If you are considering a balance transfer then there are two figures you should be aware of. The first is the APR on the balance transfer, or the balance transfer rate. This will tell you the interest that will be charged on the sum transferred and will generally be very low, or free.

Rate Tarts

In fact these introductory balance transfer offers are what caused the introduction a generation of ?rate tarts?. Basically a rate tart is someone who will search for a 0% balance transfer deal over and over again to save money on interest repayments. They will keep transferring balances and keep the cash they have saved in high interest bearing accounts. In a strange sort of way they actually use the banks? money to earn money from them, just what the banks have been doing to customers for years, earning money from their customers? savings. However, the banks do not like the rate tarts at all and have declared war. The first step, and a very powerful one was the introduction of the balance transfer charge.

Balance Transfer Charge

The other figure you should pay attention to is the balance transfer charge. While you may be charged nothing on the balance once it is on the new card, you may be charged a fee to get it there. This is usually pretty low, about two to three per cent, but you should be aware of it, and only pay it if you have to, and if you genuinely are going to make use of the low balance transfer rate.

Length of Introductory Offer

Another figure that will be of interest when shopping for a good balance transfer deal will be the length of time that the balance transfer rate lasts. It may be six or nine months, and most cards are generally about this period, but make sure you check, as if one card offers you twelve months at one per cent, and another six months at zero per cent, the twelve month card may be more suitable, depending on your circumstances, than the six month card, even though this card has a slightly lower rate.

Get The Best Balance Transfer Deal Available

If you are looking for a good balance transfer deal, then the most important thing to do, is make sure that you shop around and give yourself every opportunity to find the best deal that is available to you. Today, using the Internet, it is easier than ever to search among a huge range of credit card providers and find out exactly what each one is offering.

Only be doing a little home work and shopping around will you be giving yourself the best chance to find the card offers you the best deals. And with offers varying buy such large amounts from lender to lender, and given the amount that people pay on credit card payments, it is vital that you give yourself every opportunity to find the best deals available.

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For more information on credit cards, visit the comparison site http://www.CardGuide.co.uk for some credit card money making advice.