0% period ended - which card do I move to?

jd87

The 0% period on purchases has ended on my bmi MBNA amex. I want to try applying for another card to transfer to (with 0% or low balance transfer rate obviously).

I don't have amazingly good credit though (nothing too bad, but I have low income), so I want to be careful what I apply for. It wasn't easy getting the MBNA card. Who should I try first?

Any

jd87 wrote: »

The 0% period on purchases has ended on my bmi MBNA amex. I want to try applying for another card to transfer to (with 0% or low balance transfer rate obviously).

I don't have amazingly good credit though (nothing too bad, but I have low income), so I want to be careful what I apply for. It wasn't easy getting the MBNA card. Who should I try first?

I suggest that you go to Moneysupermarket.com and do a "Smart search". That will ask you couple of question about your circumstances - wages etc and then it searches the best deals for your particular situation.

YorkshireBoy

Any wrote: »

I suggest that you go to Moneysupermarket.com and do a "Smart search". That will ask you couple of question about your circumstances - wages etc and then it searches the best deals for your particular situation.

That 'tool' asks for neither income nor current indebtedness.

Any

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

That 'tool' asks for neither income nor current indebtedness.

Sorry, it's a while since I used it. But it still asks you fair amount of questions, like "have you ever missed a payment" and "how many credit cards you hold". So it's the best shot I know about.
Of course if you have better idea, let's just forget about mine;)

jd87

Thanks for the replies so far. I tried the moneysupermarket smart search and it said my credit level was "Fair" and recommended three different cards with 0% bt. Two of them were Barclaycards, which I didn't go for because I already have a Barclaycard. The other recommendation was a Capital One Platinum which I can't get because I'm not over 21...

I've tried applying for an Egg Card but I didn't get an instant online decision, it said they would contact me soon, so I'm guessing that means they rejected me.

latecomer

Not necessarily. I applied for an Amex platinum a while back and got the same but still got approved. I wasn't on the electoral register at my new address which is where I believe the issue was. Make sure you are registered at your address.

Guess you'll have to wait and see what they say.

YorkshireBoy

It's a gimmick at best; and encourages you to apply for cards you probably won't be accepted for. Why does it do this? To get you to apply for cards from their 'sponsored' list, ie they earn commission if you apply through the links on the results returned.

For example, it ranks me as "excellent"...and I know I'm not. It recommends I apply for the Capital One Platinum card (until 01/01/2010), even though I entered that I have...

* a missed payment, and
* 9 (nine) other credit cards, and
* applied for 3 or more cards in the last 6 months

...and we all know you have to be spotless to get accepted for that particular card.

Two of the most important elements of credit scoring, ie income and expenditure...which together determine affordability, are missing from the list of questions. IMHO, the 'smart search' isn't very smart at all.

YorkshireBoy

jd87 wrote: »

The other recommendation was a Capital One Platinum which I can't get because I'm not over 21...

So even though you entered your date of birth on the form, it recommended a product you were age-barred from applying for? I rest my case!

Any

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

So even though you entered your date of birth on the form, it recommended a product you were age-barred from applying for? I rest my case!

Fair point.

jd87

Update: I called up Egg to ask about the online application. The guy said that it has been accepted and I just have to wait 7-10 days for the card to come through. I was pleasantly surprised. He couldn't tell me how much credit limit I will get though. Probably 50p...

Any

jd87 wrote: »

Update: I called up Egg to ask about the online application. The guy said that it has been accepted and I just have to wait 7-10 days for the card to come through. I was pleasantly surprised. He couldn't tell me how much credit limit I will get though. Probably 50p...

Don't worry:D I never got lower limit then for the previous card. In fact it was steadily growing with every card I applied for, even though I still earned the same amount of money.