Tag Archives: Balance Transfer

The Anatomy of a Balance Transfer [Infographic]

By Janet Hutchins | Tagged with , , ,

One of the best ways to save money as you work to pay down debt is to use a balance transfer. A balance transfer can help you put more money toward your debt’s principal, allowing you to pay less in interest. When you aren’t paying interest, your debt is reduced faster.

There are a number of credit cards that offer low balance transfer rates. When you are only paying 2.99% on a credit card balance, more of your payment goes toward the principal, which is an improvement over paying 15.99% — or more — on your debt. It is even possible to find a Canadian credit card, like one with a low intro rate, to help you pay down your debt even faster.

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Credit Card Review: Platinum Plus MasterCard from MBNA

By Janet Hutchins | Tagged with , ,

It’s rare that you see a Canadian credit card with a 0% balance transfer offer. However, MBNA has a balance transfer card, and it’s a good deal — even by looser American standards. The Platinum Plus MasterCard from MBNA features a 0% APR for 12 months. If you are looking to transfer some high interest balances, and pay down a little credit card debt, this might be the card for you.

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Is a Balance Transfer Worth It?

By Janet Hutchins | Tagged with , , , ,

If you are trying to pay down your debt, a balance transfer might be the best option. A lower interest rate will allow you to make larger payments on your principal, which means that you will pay off your debt faster — and pay less in interest charges.

However, sometimes a balance transfer doesn’t always make the best sense. The following pros and cons of a balance transfer may help you determine if it will really work for your financial situation.

How Low is the Intro Rate?

The first question to ask is how low the interest rate is. You want to figure out how much you will save in interest payments. Some credit cards offer intro rates of as low as 0% and you can usually find low interest credit cards for 1.99%, 3.99% and 5.99%. The bigger the difference between your current interest rate and the low interest rate credit card, the more money you will save.

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0% APR: What Does It Mean?

By Janet Hutchins | Tagged with

For many, the Holy Grail of credit cards is one with 0% APR. This is because a 0% APR credit card does not charge any interest. But, since credit card companies make a great deal of money off the interest that you pay on a credit card balance, 0% APR credit cards are few and far between — and the rate is usually part of a temporary offer.

Credit Card Interest: The Basics

APR stands for “annual percentage rate.” This is the rate of interest you pay, on an annual basis, on your credit card balance. Your credit card interest fee isn’t calculated annually, though; it is actually calculated on a monthly basis or a daily basis (daily is quite popular). This means that your APR is divided by the number of times it is calculated during the year. If your interest is compounded monthly, it is divided by 12, and if compounded daily, the APR is divided by 365.

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