Balance transfer - Help

Lond2009

I have a debt of £2500 on a Halifax credit card which I want to move over. I want to pay it off in about 18 months. Will I be able to transfer over the whole lot?

I’ve just read the article about how NOT to spend on a balance transfer. If I transfer over my debt to a new card say to Virgin - 0% for 16 months, 0% on purchases for 3 months. If I spend within the 3 months I will be charged even though it is 0% ? Have i got this right?

Please can someone advise.

Many thanks

Moggles_2

I have a debt of £2500 on a Halifax credit card which I want to move over. I want to pay it off in about 18 months. Will I be able to transfer over the whole lot?

Credit limit permitting, yes (although you're advised to continue making at least the minimum payment required by Halifax until your BT request is completed.)

Of course none of us knows in advance the limit we'll be handed. If the worst happens, Martin's advice is to transfer as much as you can. Don't leave an offer unused out of exasperation. It's on your credit files, so you may as well use it. You'll still save money (See Martin's *Credit Card Limit: didn't get what you wanted?* article.)

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cards/bad-credit-rating

Any

Yes, once the 3 months for purchases are out then you start getting charged interest.

That is usually because most of the cards have such a payment hierarchy that the cheapest debts are paid off first - therefore all your payments would go against balance transfer and the purchases would be left to last...

Moggles_2

I've just read the article about how NOT to spend on a balance transfer. If I transfer over my debt to a new card say to Virgin - 0% for 16 months, 0% on purchases for 3 months. If I spend within the 3 months I will be charged even though it is 0%. Have I got this right?

I'd keep it simple. Use the new Virgin card solely for your BT(s)

Once you've paid off your Halifax cc (courtesy of Virgin or other new balance transfer card), there may be some residual interest to pay the following month. From there on, if you only ever used your Halifax card for shopping and always settled the statement balance in full by the payment due date, there would be no interest charges. Your shopping would be interest-free

mab2000

Don't spend on the virgin card if you are going to do a balance transfer. Yes, you get 0% on purchases for 3 months. However, if you do a balance transfer, any payments you make will pay off the balance transfer first, leaving any purchases attracting interest daily (from the 3rd month) until in 18 months time when you have cleared the balance transfer amount from your card, at which point your payments will then start paying off the purchases you made.

Simon_Preston

Most people have found that Virgin are quite generous with their limits. Probably they want their customers to spend up to the limit then sting them with whopping great interest hikes after the BT offer is over.
I'd suggest you apply for a seperate 0% on spending card as well if you want to make purchases.

YorkshireBoy

mab2000 wrote: »

Don't spend on the virgin card if you are going to do a balance transfer. Yes, you get 0% on purchases for 3 months. However, if you do a balance transfer, any payments you make will pay off the balance transfer first...

In the first 3 months all your payments come off the purchases first on this card, according to the current online T&C's (condition 2f, 1st bullet).

Therefore, as long as you clear your entire purchase balance before the 3rd statement date you won't pay interest on them.

However, as Moggles says above, best to keep BT's and purchases separate.

mab2000

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

In the first 3 months all your payments come off the purchases first on this card, according to the current online T&C's (condition 2f, 1st bullet).

Therefore, as long as you clear your entire purchase balance before the 3rd statement date you won't pay interest on them.

However, as Moggles says above, best to keep BT's and purchases separate.

So it does. Thought Nationwide was the only card provider that did this.

YorkshireBoy

mab2000 wrote: »

So it does. Thought Nationwide was the only card provider that did this.

Nationwide (and Saga) do it throughout your relationship with them. With MBNA, you only benefit during a promotional period...and only under a certain set of conditions.