Have just got a virgin cred card - but have spent on it!

Kavanne

steveOooo wrote: »

ah ok, even though i have 14months left of the 0% balance transfer fee?

YES. if you don't make at least the minimum payment they will remove your 0% offer.

ICan'tStandIt

mintymoneysaver wrote: »

Yes you do have to make a minimum payment. The best thing is to set up a direct debit for the minimum.

Sorry to disagree with you here minty, but while it is a good idea to have a direct debit for the minimum, a higher payment should always be made if possible to pay of the debt faster.

Minimum payments are low (around 3% of the balance) and they are low for a reason, which is so that by the time the promotional offer runs out, the bulk of the balance remains for the interest to pile on.

If you're only paying the minimum each month, the debt is not reducing that much. I would suggest dividing the debt into the number of months the offer is for and use that as your monthly payment figure - or as close to it as you can get.

That way, when the offer runs out your balance is much lower than it would have been had you just paid the minimum.

A direct debit is a good back-up for when you're not around to make a payment yourself, but you should always keep making manual payments yourself.

If you just pay the minimum each month even after the interest starts to add up, you'll be there a lifetime trying to shift the balance and the £10 you've spent is right at the bottom of it all until you have a zero balance.

Minimum payments are evil.

YorkshireBoy

ICan'tStandIt wrote: »

Sorry to disagree with you here minty, but while it is a good idea to have a direct debit for the minimum, a higher payment should always be made if possible to pay of the debt faster.

Whilst you're quite correct in a general sense, this isn't 'real' debt. The OP is stoozing the credit card...

Minimum payments are evil.

...in which case, minimum payments - and especially those at £25 on MBNA run cards - are great!

ICan'tStandIt

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

Whilst you're quite correct in a general sense, this isn't 'real' debt. The OP is stoozing the credit card......in which case, minimum payments - and especially those at £25 on MBNA run cards - are great!

If you owe money, it's a debt and it doesn't really matter if a trendy adjective gets attached to it.

If the OP is in a position to clear the debt fully after his/her offer runs out, then that's ok, but my point was that leaving a credit card balance with the minimum payment collecting is generally a really bad idea.

mintymoneysaver

ICan'tStandIt wrote: »

If you owe money, it's a debt and it doesn't really matter if a trendy adjective gets attached to it.

If the OP is in a position to clear the debt fully after his/her offer runs out, then that's ok, but my point was that leaving a credit card balance with the minimum payment collecting is generally a really bad idea.

You're quite right. What I meant was that if the op didn't even realise he actually had to pay money back each month the easiest way to remember was to set up a dd.

steveOooo

thanks guys, ive set up a dd for the min payment. Will be putting 3600 into a barclays isa and leaving it there until mid oct 2009 when i will transfer it back to the credit card.. as long as i dont get amnesia i should be fine!

ICan'tStandIt

mintymoneysaver wrote: »

You're quite right. What I meant was that if the op didn't even realise he actually had to pay money back each month the easiest way to remember was to set up a dd.

Fair enough, but why would anyone not think that they had to make a monthly payment ?

exel1966

ICan'tStandIt wrote: »

If you owe money, it's a debt and it doesn't really matter if a trendy adjective gets attached to it.

If the OP is in a position to clear the debt fully after his/her offer runs out, then that's ok, but my point was that leaving a credit card balance with the minimum payment collecting is generally a really bad idea.

It may be debt, but not all debt is bad ! Debt is NOT a dirty word as many people seem to think. Manage debt correctly and it can and will be to your own advantage and financial gain.

Leaving a credit card balance with the minimum payment collecting is NOT a bad idea if the 'collection' is ZERO providing he/she uses the debt wisely and as you say is in a position to clear it when need be.

mintymoneysaver

ICan'tStandIt wrote: »

Fair enough, but why would anyone not think that they had to make a monthly payment ?

I don't know but that's what the OP said further up the thread!

exel1966

ICan'tStandIt wrote: »

Fair enough, but why would anyone not think that they had to make a monthly payment ?

You'd be surprised by the number of people who post on this forum thinking that they don't need to make any minimum monthly payments.
Quite why they think that is baffling, but it does crop up now and again.