Consolidating CC Debt

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-02-2003
Consolidating CC Debt
3
Thu, 02-24-2005 - 1:07am

I just received a CC offer in the mail today from southwest airlines. I can get several frequent flier credits for transfering balances to the card if I open the account. The APR is 0% until October and then is only 8.9%. It seems like a good deal as I do use southwest pretty regularly but I am wondering if it is a good idea to open another credit account in order to consolidate debt? I only have two accounts currently and would close one of them if I did this. (I would keep the other open as it is overdraft protection on my checking account). I don't know if this would affect my credit score in any way etc. Just let me know what your thoughts are - I am new to this and am trying to pay off my credit cards as soon as I can!

Susan

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-31-2003
Thu, 02-24-2005 - 9:59am

Hi Susan,

When I had loads of debt on a bunch of different credit cards, I would also take advantage of new credit card offers with 0% interest for x number of months. I'd roll my higher interest onto the new card, and try to pay attention to when the 0% ended. Right before it ended, I would take out a new 0% card, and roll it over. Only a couple of times did I lose track and have to pay interest. So it did save me a lot of money.

But oh, the energy and time I put into it! I had to read all the fine print, to make sure there weren't any 'hidden charges', like transaction fees, or annual fees.

I did keep one account open, the one I'd had the longest. But I don't even have an actual card for it - I cut it up as soon as it came in. All the rest were closed even before I paid them off. I even closed my 'biggie', American Express.

You'll be so amazed when you have NO credit cards left, and NO debt! I used to get 10 or more pieces of mail per day. Now I hardly even get any mail anymore!

Good luck,

Lee Ann

Lee Ann

www.werenotafraid.com

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-06-2005
Thu, 02-24-2005 - 11:20am

Consolidating all debt onto one credit card isn't the worst idea in the world.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 02-26-1998
Thu, 02-24-2005 - 4:09pm
Also remember to check for Balance Transfer charges or yearly fees with the new card. You don't save nearly as much if there's a Balance Transfer fee etc.