Musical Debt - All About Balance Transfers

Paying off debt with high interest rates can be both frustrating and seemingly never-ending. Money put toward these overweight credit card bills will go to cover both interest and principle, but for every three steps forward, it seems one step back is taken as well.

In order to save a little cash that would otherwise be spent on high interest rates, sometimes transferring a credit card balance to a card with lower interest rates can work well in reducing debt and interest expenditure. Extensive research on all terms and conditions of a new credit card account and the desired balance transfer should be handled prior to executing the actual transfer.

The trickiest part of executing a balance transfer is selecting the credit card with the best terms of agreement. Often, a flashy, extremely low introductory rate lures in unsuspecting cardholders, who then transfer their balance only to find out the hard way six months later that the introductory rate has expired, leaving them with a hefty balance to pay off at a similar rate to the former credit card account.

This problem can be prevented with some careful research and close examination of the fine print. With amazingly low offers of zero percent interest on balance transfers, it is hard not to act quickly, but consumers will be much better off by learning everything about the card before shipping their balance off to an unknown final fate.

The Chase Platinum Visa® Card offers new applicants zero percent on purchases and balance transfers for up to 12 months. Following the introductory 12 billing cycles, interest rates climb to 8.24% variable, 12.24% variable or 16.24% variable, dependent upon Chase's evaluation of cardholders' application and credit history. Likewise, with the Discover® Platinum Clear Card, an eight month introductory period offers zero percent, followed by 9.99% and 16.99% variable rates.