Debt Free

 Balance transfers from one credit card to another are all the rage these days. Consumers regularly take advantage of the myriad of credit card offers they receive in the mail. It gets so bad at times, you’d think the credit card issuers had nothing better to do than kill as many trees as possible to print your offers on.

It can make great sense to take the balance off one high interest credit card and put on to a different card at a zero or low interest rate. It can also cost you plenty if you blindly sign the form and mail it back after being seduced by the huge “0% for Balance Transfers” headline at the top. Remember, credit card companies are in this to make a profit, not help you out in your hour of need. A common tactic is to offer a low initial rate and then roll your remaining balance into an extremely high rate after the promo period expires.

Something else the credit card execs probably stay up nights getting hard over is the sneaky terms they slide into the fine print, like this gem seen on one card offer: "we reserve the right to change the account terms including the APRs at any time for any reason." That just proves the print on those offers is fine for a reason. They’re praying you don’t read it.

Something else a balance transfer offer can contain is transfer fees. Avoid those too. There’s no reason to pay them unless you own stock in the credit card company and are trying to help its bottom line. Maybe the CEO needs a new yacht and you’re just the one to help him get it.

There’s nothing wrong with credit card balance transfers. They can be a great tool to help you pay less for your credit. Just look before you leap. The money you save will be your own.