One of the biggest successes in credit cards during the last few years has been the zero per cent balance transfer special offer, where shoppers could arrange not to pay interest charges on a debt by shifting it onto a fresh credit card that incurred no interest for a limited period on debt moved on to it.

Not only was this widely popular among people, who could keep from paying interest fees on what they owed almost indefinitely by moving the balance from card to card, it became a fiercely fought for marketing point for credit card issuers who sought to offer longer and longer specials to entice brand new clients. Alas, this state of affairs couldn't last forever - it was basically costing the credit card companies a lot of income in lost interest charges, and so the appeal of balance transfer promotions started to be restrained by additions similar to a balance transfer fee, where a predetermined fraction of the debt shifted onto the credit card was billed as a handling fee.

At this point, 0% transfer deals are still out there, but the dwindling variety of credit providers means that it's challenging to find a new provider to transfer the debt to at a 0% rate. What can you do if you've still got a big debt, and want to pay as little interest as possible? The answer is a life-of-balance transfer deal.

With these specials, instead of paying 0% for a couple of months on your balance, followed by the entire standard APR of the account once the discount offer has ended, you agree to pay a low rate of around 5% APR which is set until the remainder has been completely paid. Even though you're still having to pay for interest charges, these deals are far more cost effective than standard borrowing on a credit card, and in many instances are also more cost-effective than other types of borrowing such as unsecured loans or overdrafts.

If possible, you'd take the opportunity presented by this low interest rate to concentrate all your financial firepower on paying off the debt as quick as you can, and you certainly shouldn't shop with your balance transfer for life card if you want to get the most benefit from the low rate available.

And so, for those who have a sizable credit card account balance and want to get started repaying it in the most efficient and inexpensive way you can, a lifetime balance transfer offer is well worth looking at.

Article provided by lifetime balance transfer deals.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 1:38 pm and is filed under Credit. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.