SavingsTalk.com

Vince

First of all I have never carried a balance on a credit card before. Now with some job changes I have around $3000 on a credit card (only from groceries and other necessary living costs-not huge shopping sprees) that I pay more than the minimum required balance on each month (on time as always). My situation is this....If I transfer my $3000 balance (9.99% fixed IR) to another card that offers a 0% fixed rate for 18 months and continue to make regular payments on time- how will this affect my credit score ---or will it?? I plan on paying off in the next 3-6 months but hate paying finance charges (around $40/month) if this can be avoided. Only serious answers please.<br />

newrussian

It should do you credit good, as long as you just transfer
and don't ADD more debt, then send in a 177.00 a month and you'll have it paid off in 17 months before the interest rate kicks in.

gooner

The only negative effect I see on your credit would be if you closed out the first credit card. Part of your credit score is how long you have had an account open, the longer the more positive of effect. But you made a wise decision in balance transferring to eliminate interest. I did the same thing a few years back with $7500 of unduely debt. Just becareful in transfer fees...make sure the amount you pay to transfer does not exceed what you would pay in interest collected up to your projected pay off date. Otherwise...transfer but don't close the account. It would be better to close the new card when you are done paying it off and keep your original card.

ForexPros

There would be no negative consequence on your credit rating as long as you did not close out the account you're transferring from.
Beware of Balance Transfer Fees!!! There is usually a cap on how much they can charge (something like 5% or $100), but be sure you no the terms before transferring.

newrussian

Transfer it just as long as you know the rate after 18 months. If you decide to transfer make sure that at month 17 you have paid off most if not all your debt and do not to add more debt to it. If you need more time find another credit card that has 0% interest by month 17 so that you can transfer before your new rate kicks in.

BOB+

Here are 5 factors that will help you select a balance transfer credit card that will prove more beneficial than others.

1. Earlier it used to be 0% Intro APR on balance transfers for a specified period, but now it is gone. It is very rare to find a balance transfer credit card with 0 % Intro APR. So, the next best thign is a low APR for balance transfer. There are many credit card which offer balance transfer at APRs ranging from 4.5% to 7% for a limited period and a regular APR after that.
2. It is good to have a low APR balance transfer but if a credit card offers a low APRon balance transfer for a very short period of time, it is better to look for another. Low balance transfer APR for the life of balances is a good option to have.
3. Credit card companies do charge some fees for transfering the balance. This could be anything between 3-5% of the amount transfered. This balance transfer fees increase the cost of balance transfer. So, the ideal situation would be to have a credit card which doesn't take any balance transfer fees.
4. Any balance that has been transferred has to be repaid, now what happens is that if you have done a balance transfer and miss one payment all the goodness of low balance transfer APR vanish and an instant high regular APR sets in. This can prove fatal for all the goodies you expected with the balance transfer. So, wouldn't it be nice to have a balance transfer credit card which offers a grace period on repayment. Many credit card offer such facility and it's definitely good to have one. Read more from: http://www.credit-card-gallery.com/article/367,5_critial_factors_to_find_a_balance_transfer_c redit_card_which_saves_more_and_costs_less