Save on Credit Card Interest
Save on Credit Card Interest – Savings of Hundreds of Dollars:
Save on credit card interest by keeping your credit card balances under control and paying your bills on time. This way you will be considered one of your credit card company’s most valued customers and they will not want to lose you!
This gives you some bargaining power when it comes to having annual fees reversed and/or negotiating a better interest rate.
The average American household has more than $8,000 in credit card debt, with an average interest rate on their credit cards of 16%.
$8,000 x 16% = $1280 annually paid in interest charges. That’s more than $100 each month of money being completely wasted.
How Much Credit Card Interest Are You Paying?
If you are paying more than 15% interest on your credit card you should definitely call your credit card issuer to see whether you can negotiate a lower interest rate. You may meet with some resistance at first, as the customer service representatives are not always accustomed to customers asking for special privileges.
Some people are embarrassed to call and try to negotiate. They assume the same interest rates apply to everyone and therefore just accept the finance charges and pay the bill.
However.. this is not true. The better your credit score, the lower the interest rates you can expect to pay on your credt cards. And, the better your relationship with your credit card issuer, as far as longevity, spending habits, timely payments, etc. the more they will want to keep you happy.
You have absolutely nothing to lose by asking. If you remind them how long you have been a cardholder and what a reliable customer you have been you may be able to get a reduced interest rate.
Credit Card Companies Want Your Business:
Credit card companies are pulling out all the stops to get new customers to apply for their credit cards. The competition is fierce.. the banks are all competing for your business. This means they are also doing whatever they can to keep the customers they already have. You can definitely use this to your advantage.
Take a look and compare some of the more popular credit card offers at our site. Find out what the average interest rate is on these credit cards. This will give you a good idea of what your credit card company should be able to do for you.
If your credit card company is not willing to negotiate.. you can always apply for a new credit card and transfer the balance from the old card to the new one.
Do NOT close the old credit card, however, as this can lower your overall credit score. Be sure to use this card occasionally so the issuer will not close the account due to non-use. I have one I use only occasionally to reload money onto my Starbucks app, or when I go to lunch with a girlfriend.
Credit Card Interest is What Keeps Credit Card Companies Alive:
Many times when your credit card has had a zero balance for several months you will receive balance transfer offers from your credit card issuer. If you don’t have a balance on your credit card.. they are not making any money. And, after all, they are in business to make money so they would prefer that you have a balance on your card and are paying them some interest each month.
You don’t want to be transferring money back and forth too often, as the banks are not impressed with consumers who play the juggling games. However, it is definitely in your best interest to take advantage of long term, low-interest balance transfer offers whenever you can to help keep your interest costs down.
