No Balance Transfer Fee Credit CardA Good Deal
No Balance Transfer Fee Credit CardA Good Deal If you can get a no balance transfer fee credit card, should you? This type of card allows you to transfer balances from other credit cards without paying a fee to do so. This can save you some money, because some credit cards do charge a fee for balance transfers. Some charge $35 to $75 per transfer. So a no balance transfer fee credit card might seem like a great idea. If you have several balances to transfer, you could certainly save a lot of cash. Hundreds of dollars of savings in those transfers could make a huge difference in the amount of your debt. But don�t just assume that a no balance transfer fee credit card is a good thing because of it. Like you should before you sign any card agreement, read the no balance transfer fee credit card agreement carefully. Look for hidden costs, fees and ongoing charges that might offset the savings of no transfer fees. Make sure you know exactly what you will be charged when you start using this card. Now, look at the agreement where it discusses your interest rate. Since you�re considering transferring your balances to this card, it must have a good interest rate. At least, the interest rate is better than on your other cards. Some cards even offer no interest on balance transfers for a while. That can add up to huge savings. But make sure you know when that interest rate will change�and it will. The introductory low or no interest rate will probably only last 3 to 6 months. Some cards will even offer a year at a low rate. Note what the new rate will be. Will it be much lower than the interest you�re already paying? If not, the savings you�ll get during the introductory period might not be worth it. Whether you realize it or not, opening a new card for balance transfers affects your credit. If you have too many credit cards, your other rates can actually go up, or your credit lines could be cut. So make sure any savings is worth that possible risk when you opt to transfer balances to a new card. Also, you should be aware of what could happen if you�re late with a payment. Most credit cards that offer that low introductory rate have lots of clauses in their agreements. One states that if you miss a payment one time, the introductory rate is forfeited. This means that if you pay late, the rate will jump to the regular rate automatically. And it may even jump higher than that. Most cards have one rate for steady payers and other rates for those who miss payments. One late payment could end up costing you more in interest on this card than you would have been paying otherwise. You have to be careful and schedule your payments so you can make them on time. Also, read the agreement with your no balance transfer fee credit card so you�ll know the interest rate on purchases and cash advances, which will be much higher.