A few years ago, it was common to find no fee balance transfers as credit card companies competed for business.  While this era is coming to a close, there are still a few companies that offer this incentive, including Citi Platinum Select and Citi Diamond Preferred.  When you are looking for ways to save money, investigating ways to move your credit to a lower interest balance transfer offer.  Even though the deals are not as lucrative as they were not so long ago, you can still earn  back some of the money you would have been paying in interest.

When considering making a switch, there are credit card tactics you might want to be aware of before you make your decision.  While many of these companies will offer zero percent for a year, often there is a balance transfer fee.  This rate varies among companies, so determine if the fee is less than you will pay in interest over a year.  Often it is less, but the credit cards companies are out to make money.  Make sure you are getting at least a 12 month APR and no annual fee.

Another factor that you will want to think about is the interest rate on new purchases.  Will your payments be applied to the new purchases, or the interest free balance?  You don’t want to have your new balance staying the same while you pay off new charges.  There is a way to avoid this.  The best way is to not make new charges, but unless you are determined to pay debts off, this is not easily done.  If you make new charges, make them on your old card so that your principal amount goes down on the transferred balance.  Or better yet - open an account with zero percent on new purchases.  

Even though you may not get the glorious deals of years past, it is never too late to work on eliminating your credit card balances.  The interest can overwhelm you, and when you realize you can’t pay your debts, many people turn to drastic measures such as bankruptcy.  Make sure that you manage your money smart to keep this from happening.  Find a credit card that offers you 0 APR on balance transfers and you can soften the interest trap that locks you into years of payments.

Studies have shown that paying with a credit card increases your overall purchase, because you don’t have the emotional impact that paying with cash gives you.  Putting the credit cards away and using cash is the fastest way to get you out of debt, but by employing the credit card companies promotional offers, you can definitely make the system work faster for you.  The best way is to use a combination of the methods above to pay your debt off quickly.  Look into the different companies, contact your credit cards, and negotiate the best deals.  They want your business, make them earn it.

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