35 Articles About Avoiding Holiday Credit Card Debt

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Credit cards are known to cause financial problems for many people, this is because when people have credit cards they tend to overspend and live above their means. The holidays are always the worst time of year for credit card debt because many people rely on their credit cards to do much of their Christmas shopping. Credit cards are definitely the most convenient way to pay during the holiday hustle and bustle, whether you are at your local shopping center or if you are doing much of your holiday shopping online, which many people are starting to do nowadays. Here are some articles with advice for avoiding holiday credit card debt.

  1. Tips for Paying of Holiday Credit Card Debt – The holiday season leaves many people in debt every year, here are some tips on paying off that debt asap.
  2. 10 Tips to Completely Avoid Holiday Debt – Some do’s and don’ts on the best ways to avoid the dreaded holiday debt many of us face every year.
  3. More Tips for Paying off Those Holiday Bills – After the holidays are over the stress starts all over for many trying to pay off holiday bills.
  4. 5 Things Debt Collectors Don’t Count on You Knowing – Debt collectors count on your ignorance and fear in order to collect, here are some tips for dealing with them.
  5. Five Simple Tips For Managing Holiday Spending – Just as holiday feasting can ruin your waistline, over-enthusiastic holiday spending can bust your budget.
  6. Shopping Strategies to Avoid Holiday Debt – Regardless of the income level, there is definitely a tendency to over spend during the holidays, here are some strategies to help you avoid the holiday debt.
  7. 20 Fabulous Tips for Holiday Shopping – If you’re not careful, this spending can lead to some major financial issues for the New Year.
  8. Avoiding the Holiday Debt Hangover – Another excellent list of tips so you can avoid the holiday debt hangover.
  9. How to Avoid the Holiday Credit Card Debt Trap – Use these tips to prevent holiday credit card debt and stop overspending at Christmas.
  10. More Tips on Avoiding Holiday Debt – More great tips to help you avoid overspending during the holiday season.
  11. Avoid Debt this Holiday Season – One of the biggest problems is that people don’t set any spending limits. For some reason, people seem to think that the holidays are an excuse to spend whatever they want.
  12. 4 Ways to Avoid Credit Card Debt Especially During Holiday Seasons – 4 more tips on avoiding the dreaded holiday debt rut many get stuck in.
  13. 4 Principles To Follow To Avoid Credit Card Debt During The Holiday Seasons – 4 more excellent ideas to follow during your holiday shopping.
  14. Top Ten Ways to Avoid Holiday Debt – Avoiding debt during the holidays is easier than many think, here are some more tips to help you find the best way to cut down on holiday spending and avoid debt.
  15. Prepaid Cards Help Avoid Holiday Overspending – Prepaid credit cards are a great way to help budget during the holidays.
  16. Budgeting is Very Important During the Holidays in This Economy – Budgeting is always important if you want to save money, especially when it comes time for gift shopping, here are evn more ideas to save you money and help you budget.
  17. Wise Holiday Spending – Smart shopping and looking for the best deals can save you a lot of money, and can help avoid the dreaded holiday debt.
  18. Avoiding Christmas Debt Overload – Before you get caught up in the frenzy of Christmas consumer spending, take a moment to reflect on what is most important to you and your family during the holiday season.
  19. 10 Steps to Avoid Holiday Debt – The holiday season is just around the corner and you should be creating a holiday spending plan now.
  20. Avoid Late Payments During This Holiday Season – Do Not Allow The Holiday Season Spoil Your Debt Relief Efforts.
  21. Ten Tips for the Holidays: Avoiding Credit Card Traps – It’s not unusual for even the most savvy credit-card-carrying consumer to fall into some of the most popular traps for spenders set by credit issuers.
  22. Avoid a Financial Holiday Hangover This Year – Does this scenario sound familiar? You use credit cards to do your holiday shopping, promising yourself you’ll pay the debt off within two or three months.
  23. 6 Tips to Avoid Holiday Debt – The following are Freedom Debt Relief’s top six ways to avoid holiday debt.
  24. Holiday Shopping Tips to Avoid Debt – With Black Friday just around the corner, you can use these tips to help you stay out of debt while buying gifts for all your friends and family this year.
  25. How do I avoid a holiday debt hangover? – Here are 10 practical tips to help you keep your holiday spending in check.
  26. Eight Ways to Avoid Holiday Debt – 8 more tips on saving money this holiday season and avoiding debt.
  27. Wiping off Your Holiday Debts – Wiping out that holiday debt when January rolls around is never fun, here are some tips to help get rid of the debt quick or avoid it entirely.
  28. Avoid ‘Holiday’ Debt – Six Tips to Keep in Mind – If you want to avoid holiday debt, here are even more excellent tips.
  29. How To Avoid Going Into Holiday Debt , and Protect Your Credit Scores along the Way (Video) – Here is some advice on protecting your credit scores, shopping tips, and avoiding holiday debt.
  30. Great Posts on Christmas Shopping and Avoiding Debt – Here are a bunch of good posts discussing the holidays, shopping, and saving money.
  31. Holiday Spending Tips (PDF) – More top notch ideas and tips to save you money this Christmas.
  32. Avoid High Holiday Debt – Researchers point out that shoppers are much less likely to overspend if they start with an overall plan for holiday shopping.
  33. 5 Money Saving Tips for the Holidays – Cost-saving tips that can help you avoid financial stress this holiday season.
  34. How to avoid credit card debt this Christmas – For many people Christmas is a time to give generously to friends and family, but if you haven’t been saving throughout the year it can be easy to rely on credit cards and overspend.
  35. Tackling Post-Holiday Debt – How to manage your post-holiday finances.

Image Credits: Sun Dazed

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Want a Lower Credit Card APR? Ask for It!

With the possible exception of balance transfer credit cards (which are going the way of the Dodo, thanks to the CARD Act) most folks probably aren’t entirely thrilled with their interest rate. The fact of the matter is that, up until recently, credit card companies could raise your interest rate almost at the drop of a hat. They could do it without notifying you, too, other than the basic notification you get in the terms for the credit card.

What you may not realize, however, is that a lower interest rate may be just a phone call away. In many instances, the way to get a lower APR on your credit card is simply to ask. How do you do that? It’s a relatively simple process:

  • Brush up on your credit score knowledge. Know what goes into a credit score. Take a look at your own credit score and credit history. The better your credit score, the better your chances of being able to negotiate a lower interest rate with your credit card company.
  • Call up the credit card company’s customer service number. Tell the representative you’re unhappy with your current rate. You may find that you get an offer to lower your rate right off the bat. You may not. You may have to push things a little further.
  • If you have a history of making your payments on time, point that out. A good payment history gives you a better chance to get a lower rate.
  • If you’ve got a balance transfer credit card offer sitting on your desk, point that out as well. The credit card company doesn’t want to lose you to another company.
  • Stay friendly, persistent, professional and determined. Don’t take “no” for an answer, at least not from the first person you talk to. Do what you can to try to talk to a manager if the CSR can’t or won’t lower your interest rate.

Ultimately, you can’t be sure of success. However, what you can be sure of is this: if you don’t try to get the credit card company to lower your interest rate, there’s a good chance that it’s not going to happen at all. The company is in business to make money, and if you don’t let them know you’re unhappy they aren’t going to randomly lower your rate.

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A Tale of Two Balance Transfers


It was the best idea, it was the worst idea. Depending on how you use your balance transfer credit cards, you could end up saving or losing. We’ll share two stories of how people have used balance transfers.

Mark

Mark was running close to his credit limits and having trouble keeping up with the minimum monthly payments on three credit cards. He wanted to consolidate, and he had heard the buzz about balance transfer credit cards, so he quickly applied for a card and transferred his balances.

Mark’s credit cards were:

  • Credit Card A: Credit Limit of $5,000, Balance of $4,750, APR of 8.5%
  • Credit Card B: Credit Limit of $2,500, Balance of $2,390, APR of 12.99%
  • Credit Card C: Credit Limit of $1,500, Balance of $500, APR of 17.99%

Mark’s Balance Transfer credit card had:

  • 2.5% introductory rate for 6 months
  • 13.99% standard APR
  • 5% balance transfer fee

Mark transferred the entire balance from all three cards onto his new balance transfer credit card, giving him a balance of $8022 after the balance transfer fee. With a 6-month introductory period, he would have to make monthly payments of $1337 to pay off the balance transfer before the standard rate kicked in, but he could afford that, so he continued making only the minimum payments.

Instead of saving money during the introductory period, Mark paid an extra $75 in interest and fees than he would have if he had left things alone. Most of this was due to the balance transfer fee of $382, but even after the introductory period ended, Mark continued paying $22 a month more than he otherwise would have.

Mark didn’t save money on his balance transfer because he didn’t understand the basics about using balance transfer credit cards. He also didn’t use a balance transfer calculator to work out the math in advance.

Janie

Janie wanted to pay down her credit card debt and start saving for retirement. She had three credit cards and she knew she should start with the one that carried the highest interest rate first. She made a budget and planned to pay off her balance transfer during the introductory period. She also did some online research and found the best balance transfer credit card offer she could qualify for.

Janie’s highest interest credit card had a limit of $5,000, a balance of $4,280 and an APR of 14.99%.

Janie’s Balance Transfer credit card had:

  • 0% introductory rate for 18 months
  • 11.99% standard APR after the introductory period
  • 4% balance transfer fee

Even though Janie paid a balance transfer fee of $171.20, she saved almost $1000 in interest that she would have paid to her old credit card company during the 18-month introductory period. By making regular payments of $250, Janie was able to pay off the $4280 balance before the standard APR kicked in. Janie had such a good experience, she decided to open a new balance transfer credit card and start the process all over again.

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Last of the CARD Act Rules Kick In

It’s been a hard year for the credit card companies. Whether it’s the rules that apply to introductory rates such as are common with balance transfer credit cards, or whether it’s the rules that apply to penalty interest rates, or whether it’s the hassle that credit card companies have had to go through in order to be allowed to charge an overlimit feel, the landscape has changed. Hopefully, the landscape has changed for the better, at least for the consumer.

Recently, the final provisions of the CARD act have kicked in. This is the third and final phase of the Credit Card Accountability and Responsibility and Disclosure Act, the strangely-named yet neatly abbreviated law that changed the way that credit card companies can deal with their customers.

Here are some of those final provisions that have just gone into effect:

  • Credit card issuers cannot now impose a fee on their customers for inactivity.
  • Credit card companies can’t raise a customer’s interest rates without an explanation. This has actually been standard practice for a long time, but the credit card companies have relied on the credit card agreement to notify customers rather than on a specific notification, which is now required.
  • They can no longer charge multiple fees for the same error. For example, in the past, you might have to pay a past due fee if you missed your payment date. If this put you over your credit limit, you’d also have to pay an overlimit fee. This is no longer allowed.
  • There is a cap on late fees of $25. This only applies if you haven’t been late more than once in a six month period.
  • Fees can’t be larger than the debt you are carrying on your card. If you have a $15 balance, they can’t charge you $25 for missing your payment.
  • If your credit card company raises your interest rate because of late payments, you can lower your interest rates by being in good standing for six months.

In addition to the above provisions for credit cards, gift cards will be required to be honored for five years after their issuance, without a penalty of losing value.

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50 Articles About Understanding the Risks of Transferring Credit Card Balances

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There are many risks that you undertake when you transfer one balance from a card to another.  Here are some of the things that you need to be aware or, as well as guides that can help you get the best deal.  Many of these companies do not disclose all the terms, so understanding what you are getting into is very important to make sure that you really are saving money and getting a good deal.

  1. Dinks Finance:  Looks at what they are and how they can be used to the best benefit.
  2. Pradx:  They take a look at all the risks for balance transfers.
  3. Smart Balance Transfers:  Looks at the fees and 0% periods of top cards.
  4. QB Blog:  Looks at the advantages and disadvantages of transferring balances.
  5. Cheap Credit Cards:  Looks at the lifetime balance transfer cards and the benefits and drawbacks.
  6. Best Credit Quote: Ways to save money when you transfer.
  7. Financial Solution:  Looks at ways to maximize the benefits of transferring.
  8. Thaipparmbil:  Looks at if transfers make debt problems worse.
  9. Bill Savings:  Looks at a credit card transfer calculator and how it can save you money.
  10. Doughroller:  Guide to credit card transfers.
  11. Debt Fix:  5 tips to making transfers work for you.
  12. The Digerati Life:  Tips and tricks to using transfers.
  13. Debt Relief:  How transfers can help you get out of debt and the problems with it.
  14. Credit Card Rewards:  4 tips on transfers.
  15. CFGARS Finance:  Tips to save money on transfers.
  16. Better Living:  Gives tips and facts to 0% APR.
  17. Crediteria:  All about zero transfer credit cards transfers.
  18. Credit Card Offers:  Looking at offers facts and myths.
  19. Bad Credit FYI:  Looking at understanding balance offers.
  20. Consumerism Commentary:  Looks at the risks for balance transfers from Chase cards.
  21. CT Watchdog:  Looks at the rates for transfers and if they are fully disclosed.
  22. Saving Advice:  Looks at some of the fine print on offers.
  23. Credit Cards for People With No Credit:  Looks at if it will affect your credit score to transfer.
  24. Consumer Boomer:  Looks at the best cards to use for transfers.
  25. No Annual Fee Cards:  Looks at common questions about card transfers.
  26. A Dawn Journal:  Looks at using them to your advantage.
  27. Debt Consolidation Care:  Looks at the dos and don’ts of transferring.
  28. 2 Million’s Personal Finance:  Looks at the 0% APR transfer cards.
  29. Money Help For Christians:  Looks at if transferring really does anything for you.
  30. Digital News Report:  Looks at two popular card transfers from Citibank and Discover.
  31. Best Credit Cards:  Pros and cons of balance transfers.
  32. Credit Card Chaser:  Looks at the credit score effects when you transfer.
  33. Personal Finance:  Looks at the pitfalls of credit card balance transfers.
  34. Taking Charge:  Looks at penalty rate disclosures disappearing from credit card companies.
  35. Budget Sense:  Looks at the dangers of transferring balances.
  36. Credit Card Flyers:  Looks at the dangers of balance hopping from card to card.
  37. Five Cent Nickel: Looks at the 0% APR for balances and offers reasons to avoid it.
  38. Finance Blog:  Helps you decide if the transfers are good or a threat to your credit.
  39. Lateral Drawer:  Looks at the dangers of credit cards, including transferring.
  40. Yovia:  Offers a guide on how to do a credit card balance.
  41. PT Money:  Looks at the dangers with 0% transfer offers.
  42. Debt Free Adventure:  They offer a reader balance transfer advice that has many cards.
  43. TFB Got Money?:  Looks at the problems of balance transfer cards.
  44. Credit Card Express:  Offers advice on comparing offers before you decide.
  45. My Bank Tracker:  Looks at fees, including transfer fees you may not have known about.
  46. Road To Freedom Zona:  Looks at the legitimacy of 0% APR transfer cards.
  47. Soft Five:  Offers a calculator to see how much you really save with a balance transfer.
  48. Credit Shout:  Another balance transfer calculator to help you make the decision.
  49. Metalloprokat:  Shows how much you can save with a 0% APR transfer.
  50. Money Ning:  Looks at the differences between 0% purchases and balance transfers and which one is better.

Image credits: orphanjones

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Top Ten Balance Transfer Tips

Consumers are increasingly digging themselves out of debt. One smart way to do it is by taking advantage of low introductory interest rates on new credit cards and transferring balances from high interest rate cards. We’ll share our top ten tips for getting the most out of your balance transfer credit cards:

  1. Always search for the best offers from multiple lenders on balance transfer credit cards. Some are offering 18 months at 0% APR, others just six or seven. Be sure you’re finding the best deals and compare terms.
  2. Don’t transfer a balance on the credit card application if you can avoid it. You may not know your introductory rate or time period until your card arrives, and you can’t be sure you’ll save any money without that information.
  3. Do the math to make sure you’re getting a good deal. Use a balance transfer calculator to see how much you can save on balance transfer credit cards.
  4. Transfer balances only from cards with high interest rates. You may think you’re saving money transferring a balance from a card with a 7.9% APR, but you’re probably not. The balance transfer will cost you a fee of up to 5%. If there are any annual or account set-up fees on the new card, you could be eating up your savings with fees.
  5. After you’ve transferred the balance, stop using your old cards. They’re only adding to your debt load, which is what you’re trying to get rid of. If you can’t stop yourself from spending, cut up your cards.
  6. Keep your old credit card accounts open. No, we’re not contradicting what we said above about cutting up your cards. Keeping the accounts open and active could help your credit rating, because it boosts your amount of available credit. Don’t use the cards, but don’t close the accounts either.
  7. Pay your bill on time every time. Make sure you know how high the penalty APR is on your balance transfer credit card, and what puts it into effect. If you make one or two late payments, you could end up in worse shape than you started out.
  8. Keep making payments on your old credit card until the balance transfer goes through. Even after that, be sure to check and see if you owe any interest for the last month, because you could have been charged interest before the balance transfer posted.
  9. Pay off your balance transfer during the introductory period. Not only is this the best way to get out of debt faster, but you could be responsible for retroactive interest if you don’t.
  10. Don’t make purchases on your balance transfer credit card. Purchases often have a higher interest rate than balance transfers. If your lender applies negative payment hierarchy, you could end up with a whopping bill for the interest on any purchases you make until your balance transfer is paid off.

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45 Blog Posts Discussing How Often Online Credit Card Theft Happens

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With any type of credit card or even bank account there are many ways that your info can be exposed on the web. Online credit card theft happens frequently and is always on the rise. The better companies get with their security, the better hackers and other criminals get with trying to uncover them. It is something anyone with a credit card should think about once in a while. Even if you do not buy anything online you could still be a possible victim since many corporations keep all their files online, so you may have purchased something with your credit card at a store and then your number goes int their database. Here are some articles that show the rising trends and also ways to help protect yourself.

  1. Identity Theft: How Often Does it Really Happen? An attorney blogs about his personal views on credit card theft.
  2. Identity Theft: How It Happens, Its Impact on Victims, and Legislative Solutions An informative and concise report on  the crime of identity theft, and the most common ways of doing this using social security and credit card numbers.
  3. Consumer Action :: Questions and answers about credit card fraud Provides FAQ answers about credit card theft.
  4. Legal:Identity-Theft An article pointing out how easy it is to have personal identification information land in the hands of people that can use it illegally and for profit, and how to combat this.
  5. Why Get Identity Theft Protection? Discusses the effectiveness and trustworthiness of several well known identity theft protection companies.
  6. How credit card fraud happens and what to do about it Tells of most likely scenarios for Identity thieves to get your information as well as your liabilities.
  7. Tips to handle online debit card theft Talks about the “card skimmer’’ scenario – Keep your card in your sight at all times!
  8. A list of ways identity thieves can get your information.
  9. Identity Theft Protection Blog – Compare LifeLock, Trusted ID and other Identity Theft Services Reviews Identity theft in Web 2.0 environments, internet shopping, and the value of frequent credit score checking.
  10. FRBB: Identity Theft Report on identity theft, FBI says this is one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States.
  11. Get ID Smart – Identity Theft Prevention Discusses how identity theft occurs, how often and what to do if it happens to you.
  12. Identity Theft and Your Credit Report Mentions Phishing.
  13. moneyunder30.com- I.D.theft rising in recession States the recession is making identity theft increase rapidly.
  14. Odds-of-Identity-Theft-1-in-18.22 The odds of identity theft happening to you – approximately 5% of the population!
  15. Credit card fraud – how to protect yourself 2008 saw a 22% rise in credit card fraud – how to protect yourself.
  16. Signature advice to combat identity theft Describes signature protection and verification system devised to ensure against identity theft.
  17. Did I uncover your credit card details online today? An avid blogger describes how he found a full list of credit card details online without intending to.
  18. Identity Theft and Credit Card Fraud – The Difference Mentions that the majority of all credit card number thefts are used for online purchases regardless of how they are acquired.
  19. 2009 identity theft statistics Includes data on credit card theft, 26% of annual loss.
  20. Shocking Statistics of Credit Card Identify Theft Addresses the huge problem of credit card identity theft.
  21. Statistics on online identity theft The fastest growing white collar crime in the United States.
  22. Online identity theft An article about online credit card fraud and online shopping.
  23. Internet identity theft Focuses on the fact that identity thieves are trying to swindle people as soon as they are of legal age to have credit cards.
  24. Identity Theft Statistics – The Costs of America’s Fastest Growing Crime A list of identity theft techniques including credit card theft.
  25. Email Scam, Internet Fraud, Identity Theft & Phishing Resource A list of email scams designed to steal credit card information.
  26. Protecting yourself from ID theft A list of links with advice concerning identity and credit card theft.
  27. Banks use scare tactics in identity theft cover – Times Online Banks are being accused of using high pressure tactics to get customers to invest in credit card theft protection.
  28. Black Market in Stolen Credit Card Data Thrives on Internet – New York Times A report on organized crime and its influence on stolen credit card numbers.
  29. Successful phishing scams Reveals common phishing scams used to steal credit card information.
  30. Identity theft plagues Canadians as online shopping grows An article about the rise in online crime as credit card use has escalated in online shopping in Canada.
  31. Credit Card Fraud in Indonesia A report about credit card theft in Indonesia, illustrating the breadth of the theft on world wide level.
  32. Identity Finder Facts and Figures for Identity Theft Statistics on identity and credit card theft.
  33. Identity Theft | Identity Theft Statistics | ID Theft A blog describing identity theft, video included.
  34. Cardless criminals Card not present (CNP) fraud report.
  35. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) – Identity Theft U.S. government report on identity theft.
  36. City of Lone Tree, Colorado – Official Website – Identity Theft Statistics Colorado city’s report on identity theft.
  37. Identity theft online A Q and A type blog designed to provide answers about identity theft.
  38. Online Identity Fraud Can Affect Anyone! “The crime of the century” – online credit theft review.
  39. Capewomenonline’s report on online identity theft A Cape Cod, Massachusetts women’s group speaks out about internet identity theft.
  40. Credit card theft hurts retailers and credit card consumers Although on occasion a credit card theft victim may not be penalized, the crimes are driving prices up as sellers try to recuperate losses.
  41. Credit Card Fraud A concise definition of credit card fraud.
  42. Beware of Internet fraud, identity theft A report from a South American newspaper.
  43. Identity theft case studies and statistics – J.B. MacLean Consulting Inc – Security solutions for today’s technology An in-depth report concerning identity theft case studies and statistics.
  44. Credit card fruad and e-commerce today A report on crime syndicates’ interest in credit card theft.
  45. Online merchant fraud statistics Online merchant fraud statistics show that online fraud is growing rapidly.

Image Credits: neoliminal

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Balance Transfer Credit Cards Dos and Don’ts

A lot of people are worried about the economy these days, and many are looking for ways to save more of what they earn and get out of debt faster. This has led some people to take advantage of balance transfer credit cards. Opening a new credit card with a low or 0% APR, then transferring a balance from a higher interest account can be a great way to pay off your debts, just make sure you follow the basic dos and don’ts.

Do:

  • Know how much the balance transfer will cost you. Almost all banks are charging balance transfer fees around 3% – 5%. You will save money on interest if your current interest rate is high, but you should still do the math with a balance transfer calculator and know how much you will save.
  • Read the important disclosures section on the card application. Make sure you know the teaser rate and length of the introductory period, as well as the standard and penalty APRs. Use all this information when deciding which balance transfer credit cards to sign up for.
  • Find out the introductory rate and length of time for purchases as well. This is often different from the terms for balance transfers.
  • Pay off your entire balance transfer during the introductory period. If you don’t, you could be charged retroactive interest on the entire balance transfer amount.
  • Watch for your old card statement and continue making payments on time. It may take up to 30 days for the balance transfer to clear.

Don’t:

  • Transfer a balance before you know your final interest rate, introductory term length, and credit limit. With some balance transfer credit cards, you’ll know when applying for the card. Others will say certain terms depend on a review of your credit. If you don’t know how long your introductory period lasts or how low your interest rate will be, you can’t be sure you’re saving money on the balance transfer credit card.
  • Make purchases with your new card. You could wind up paying a lot of interest on a small amount of purchases. Many banks use negative payment hierarchy, meaning your payments will be applied to the charges with the lowest APR first. If your balance transfer has a 0% APR and the interest rate for purchases is 7.9%, you could rack up lots of interest on even a small purchase.
  • Close your old account. Keeping it open will help your credit utilization ratio. Lenders like to see that you have plenty of revolving credit that you aren’t using. If your old bank charges membership dues or inactivity fees, close the old account before you lose money on the deal.

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When Balance Transfers Make Sense – And When They Don’t

Even with the tightening credit market, there are still a number of good balance transfer credit cards out there. If you’re looking to lower your interest rate and pay off your credit card debt sooner, using balance transfer credit cards make a lot of sense. There are some cases, however, where transferring a balance doesn’t make that much sense. We’ll run down the math.

Saving money by using balance transfer credit cards requires some careful attention to the fine print. For any credit card offer, review the Important Disclosures section thoroughly. The offer of credit must include certain critical details that will help you figure out if it makes good financial sense for you to transfer a balance to this new card.

First, make sure the offer you’re considering is with a different bank than the one you wish to transfer. Most lenders won’t transfer balances between two of their own cards for obvious reasons: the money you stand to save would ultimately go to them without the balance transfer. So be sure you’re applying for credit with a different card company.

Next, look for the balance transfer fee. This is often included in the Additional Fees or Transaction Fees section, so you may have to scroll down and/or squint your eyes to find it. Most balance transfer credit cards will charge a fee of around 3% – 5% of the balance you transfer. This should cost you less than the interest you would otherwise pay on your current card, but we’ll cover that a little later.

Probably the most important detail you want to pay close attention to is the length of the introductory period for balance transfers. Sometimes this will be different from the introductory period on transactions, so be sure to look closely for this information.

Some card offers won’t tell you how long the introductory period is up front, but offer a range of terms depending on your credit history. Borrowers with stellar credit will get the longest amount of time, while those with poor credit will get a shorter timeframe.

Be prepared to pay off your entire balance transfer during the introductory period. Many lenders charge retroactive interest on balances that are not paid off before the standard rate kicks in. Be sure you know in advance if your new card has this kind of charge. If you don’t see it in the Important Disclosures, just ask.

Be sure to look for other details in the offer, including the standard interest rate and penalty APR, as well as any annual or membership fees. These will eat away at the savings you could rake in using a balance transfer credit card. When you have all the details, use a balance transfer calculator to see how much you could save.

Photo via Jim Epler

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