Credit Card Rates

  Credit Card Rates  - 3 step proactive approach to lower the high interest rates on your credit card  - May 4, 2007  

A credit card with high interest rate is bleeding you white, and you find that there are other credit card offers with significantly lower interest rates. You simply want your credit card company to lower the interest rates, but how to approach them? Here is a 3 step proactive approach that will solve this problem.

Step 1: Get a clear picture of the interest rates you are currently paying

If you have only one credit card, it won't be difficult. But, having a pocket full of credit card will take a little effort on your part to tabulate corresponding interest rates. Mark the credit cards which cost you a lot in terms of APR and other fees. Also, note which one of your low interest rate credit cards allow balance transfers. Note down the contact information of every credit card you hold and move to the next step in the process.

Step 2: Contact the credit card agency to lower the interest rates

As the second step, call the high interest rate credit card provider and tell them, how good your relations are with the credit card company, you have been their customer for so long, have been prompt on repayments and the credit rating is also good ( don't make false claims, only tell what is correct, since the credit card companies will have all the details and can verify anytime.) so, they should lower the interest rate on their credit card. As, a small leverage you can tell them that a credit card with the same rewards and offers are providing a low interest rates and it would be better if the currently high interest charging credit card matches the rate. Ok, now you have done your part and its the turn of credit card company to move things now. If you have a good reputation with them, they will certainly like to keep you as their client. If, they offer a new low rate, make sure that it is permanent not temporary and get the offer of lower interest rate documented. If for some reason, the credit card company doesn't heed to your request, there is nothing to worry. Move on to step three.

Step 3: Transfer the balances if they don't

Remember, in step 1 we talked about keeping account of credit cards with low interest rates, which allow balance transfer, they come into picture here. If you have such cards, contact their issuing agencies and ask them about balance transfer fees and other charges and are they willing to transfer balances from your existing high interest rate credit card. If you don't have any such low interest rate credit card, which offers balance transfer, by all means search for one that provides attractive balance transfer rates and a 0% Intro APR for the longest period. This will keep the interest rates on the lower side. Now, transfer your high interest rate balances to this credit card, and close the high interest credit card account. The money you will save on interest rates can be used for other things to improve your financial condition.

Remember, proactivity always pays, credit card companies don't lower interest rates on their own. They have to be told to do so, and if you have valid reasons and good credit history to support you, you can always get a bargain, otherwise there is always the option of balance transfer.

  Credit Card Rates  - 4 Tips on How to Eliminate Credit Card Debt  - Apr 1, 2007  

If you have found yourself overwhelmed by debt from your credit cards, you may be wondering how to eliminate credit card debt in your life. Believe it or not, you have a lot of company when it comes to worrying about how you are going to eliminate credit card debt. Many Americans are over their heads in debt. It is important that you take steps to get your debt under control before you end up in serious financial trouble.

Find a Way to Get Better Rates

One way that can help you get rid of the credit card debt that you are in is to find a way that you can get better rates on your credit cards. You can do this by trying to find a credit card that has lower rates than your current cards, and then make transfers over to the card with the lower interest rate.

Another way you may be able to get better rates is to try to negotiate with the company or have a credit counselor negotiate with the company to get you better rates on your card. While you may not realize it, having a lower rate can actually save you hundreds of dollars and can help you get out of credit card debt much faster.

Eliminate Debts One By One

If you are wondering how to eliminate credit card debt, another way that can be a great help is to start working methodically to eliminate your debts one by one. You can choose either to pay extra on your card with the lowest amount of debt or you may want to pay more on the card with the highest interest rate, but whichever way you choose will be a great way to help you get out of debt much faster.

Debt Consolidation

If you are serious about getting rid of your credit card debt once and for all, you may want to work on getting a debt consolidation loan. This method of elimination will help give you lower interest rates, a regular payment schedule, and you will only have one easy payment to make each month. This is a very easy and effective way to eliminate the credit card debt that has been causing you so much trouble.

Control Your Spending

When many people ask how to eliminate credit card debt, many times they are already overlooking very simple solutions that can help them. One very simple and common sense solution that can help you eliminate your debt is to control how much you are spending. If you want to get rid of your credit card debt, then you should not be spending more money on credit cards. Try sticking to paying cash for everything possible, and you may want to start saving money and putting it away for emergencies as well, so you will not even have to use a credit card if you have an emergency.

Credit card debt can turn into a quagmire very quickly and it can be difficult to figure out how to eliminate credit card debt once you get deep into debt. If you use the previous tips in your life, you will better be able to take control of your finances and you will be able to become debt free more quickly as well.

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