Question
It seems like the juiciest 0% interest balance transfer offers have dried up (corresponding to a rise in interest rates, presumably) in the past several months. I used to get offers in the mail almost every day for a 0% BT card, and I would just open it and see if there were any BT fees, and if there were not I would consider opening the card, and I usually wouldn't because I didn't have any balances to Xfer. Now it's been a long time since I've seen one with no fees, and sure enough, I could use one.
What are the best cards out there for free/cheap balance transfers? I would be transferring most of the money from a Citi Dividend Platinum Select Mastercard, so for me it probably has to be not a Citi card (or else they have to allow a transfer check, so that I could just pay off the Citi card and then deposit the transfer check in my bank account).
Thanks for any replies...
-huge
Answer
There are a handful of cards that offer 0% BT for 12 months with no BT fee. Some require that you give the account for the BT at the time of the application but others do not. Other than the 0 fee BT offer, the going rate seems to be 3% with a max of $75.
My recommendation is to look at CardOffers.com. Another place to research what will work for you is fatwallet.com Look at all the "App-O-Rama" threads -- sometimes seen as "AOR" in the headings (in the finance section of the forums). These are folks who are playing the BTs to use the float to generate interest before paying back the balance at the end of the promotional BT period. They report the cards they use and the BT fees that apply.
Answer
Discover Gas Card (https://www.discovercard.com/apply/gas/)
PNC Visa (http://www.pnc.com/webapp/unsec/Solutions.do?siteArea=/PNC/Home/Personal/Cards/Personal+Credit+Cards)
Advanta Business Mastercard (https://www.advanta.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=apply.card_features_sem&orgcode=SEM005)
Answer
Discover Gas Card (https://www.discovercard.com/apply/gas/)
PNC Visa (http://www.pnc.com/webapp/unsec/Solutions.do?siteArea=/PNC/Home/Personal/Cards/Personal+Credit+Cards)
Advanta Business Mastercard (https://www.advanta.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=apply.card_features_sem&orgcode=SEM005)
PNC is a good choice, but the Discover has a hefty fee:
CASH ADVANCE TRANSACTION FEE: 3% for each cash advance, with a minimum of $5 and no maximum.
Answer
Discover Gas Card (https://www.discovercard.com/apply/gas/)
PNC Visa (http://www.pnc.com/webapp/unsec/Solutions.do?siteArea=/PNC/Home/Personal/Cards/Personal+Credit+Cards)
Advanta Business Mastercard (https://www.advanta.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=apply.card_features_sem&orgcode=SEM005)
The PNC Visa is the only one listed that does not charge a b/t fee. The advanta business is just as bad as the discover and the discover is not accepted as many places. but if you use a card to b/t then you should put it in a safe or a safe deposit box so you don't use it until the period has expired. Here is the terms of the advanta:
Balance Transfers: 3% (minimum $5; maximum $50 with this introductory offer).
Answer
I noticed a couple of the store banded VC/MCs have 0% BT with no BT Fees. Usually on 6 month BTs. Keep an eye on your sunday paper.
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Cash advances are not the same as balance transfers
The Discover Card lists no balance transfer fee. I did not pay a fee for the balance transfer I did to this card.
My error on the Advanta card. I should read my own website carefully. Sorry about that.
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Citi Professional has 0% for 12 months with no balance transfer fee.
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New accounts from citibank generally carry 12 month 0% balance transfer (you can deposit the money into your bank account if you want) at 3% (max. $75) fee. I myself earned around $ 1,500 as an interest, floating credit card money into HSBC savings account. :)
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Your right, I read it wrong. But when I called them they said sometimes they have a promotion that is fee free and sometimes they don't. So push for the no fee balance transfer and you will probably get it.
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I just attempted to do one to see what kind of deal I could get. They offered me one at 5.9% with no fees and one at 0% with a 3% fee. So they will negotiate it appears. Push and push and get the best deal you can, and by all means post them here. pgary I LOVE YOUR SITE!
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I have Capital One which was $0 annual fee, $0 balance transfer fee, and 0% for life of transfer balance, but the current offerings from Capital are not so good. I transferred $30k from my equity line to Capital for the free interest. Of course this means I can't really use the card for anything else since the payment is applied towards the balance transfer prior to new purchases, so the new purchases will have a finance charge...
My recollection is that several banks offer periodic "promotions" for existing customers... Not all promotions are advertised. You might call your current creditors and see if they have any promotions that would work for you...
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I called to cancel my Discover Card early last year and they offered a 0% no fee balance transfer. The only catch was after 7 months I had to make a $25 purchase each month to keep the 0% alive. The $25 purchases accrue interest at the normal purchase rate, but it's negligible compared to the money I'm saving on my $15,000 balance tranfer.
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Does this mean that now you have a $30,000 credit line with this one CapOne card?
I have Capital One which was $0 annual fee, $0 balance transfer fee, and 0% for life of transfer balance, but the current offerings from Capital are not so good. I transferred $30k from my equity line to Capital for the free interest. Of course this means I can't really use the card for anything else since the payment is applied towards the balance transfer prior to new purchases, so the new purchases will have a finance charge...
My recollection is that several banks offer periodic "promotions" for existing customers... Not all promotions are advertised. You might call your current creditors and see if they have any promotions that would work for you...
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Does this mean that now you have a $30,000 credit line with this one CapOne card?Yes. I took the MAX that they offered for this exact purpose. The down-side is that the minimum payment on a $30,000 credit card bill is a lot higher than the payment on a $30,000 line of credit. But at 0% I can't resist.
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Someone was offering a 18month 0% bt recently. I got it in the mail but did not keep it. Anyone know who that was?
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I got a mailer the other day for a Discover card with 0% per life as long as 2 purchases per month after 11/07 and $29 max transfer fee. Not sure where I put it, though. The deals are still out there.
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So you get a cash advance for 0% adn then come 11/07 it starts costing you whatever the APR is. The payments apply to the b/t and any other promo rates before applying to purchases. It sounds good but the only way to extend this out with very little expense would be to buy a piece of bubble gum every couple of weeks. But you and I and Discover know that is not what will happen and they will soon have that APR money.
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Not if I charge $0.01 to my account from Paypal twice a month. I wasn't gonna apply but plenty of people on FatWallet do this exact thing.
This card has no BT fee and 0% for 12 months:
http://www.discovercard.com/apply/platinum/?icmpgn=200512_dc_wp_hu_drpdwn_acq_nap_pla_1
Answer
Someone was offering a 18month 0% bt recently. I got it in the mail but did not keep it. Anyone know who that was?
The Advanta Business Card was 15 month and $50 BT max... so that was nice...
I would too like a 18 month 0% BT..... but why did you throw that away? Offers like that I file for a few months until they expire, in case they are needed.