Credit Cards to Purchase Car?

nh

Pricy147 wrote:

all the gumpf on offsetting is available on the Inteligent Finance web site; https://www.if.com.

Basically as said earlier - its a normal loan and can be used for any purpose. What you have in your current account with them is offset against your loan. So if you have a loan for 10k, and 5k in your current account - you pay interest on the remaining 5k of the loan. No capital is payed off the loan however (only through monthly payments). So the cash in your current account can be withdrawn at any time. Vice verca - if you have a 10k loan, and 15k in your current account - you will pay no interets on the loan, and receive interest on the surpless 5k. Therefore offsetting with credit cards at 0% efectively give you a zero percent loan (if you can cover the full amount).

You repay the loan like any loan (out of your wages). You repay the minimum payments on the credit cards out of the money you are offsetting. Once the introductory rate ends - you pay it off.

So is it a good idea to apply for an IF current account some months before applying for a loan? Maybe use the account a little to build up some history with them? I don't need the loan till September. I have tried to apply for the current account online but can't get cookies to work.

And I have only just applied (and been accepted) for the Halifax moneyback account so should I wait a couple of months before applying to IF?

t_i_g_e_rr

nh wrote:

Then you have to make the minimum payment on the credit cards each month - do you have to make a minimum payment on the loan as well?

You would pay off the loan as normal, out of your wages; therefore your loan would reduce. You would pay off the credit cards from the money in your current account; therefore your current account would reduce.
Example: If you had a £6,000 loan, and £6,000 in your current account from credit cards, you might pay £200 off your loan from you wages and also £200 off your credit card from your current account, leaving you with a £5,800 loan and £5,800 in your current account. Net affect? 0% loan!
I hope this helps. (Alternatively you pay off more on your loan than you pay off your credit card, at which point your stoozing! )

fatboyonadiet

another option is to get the 0% and then get a life of balance transfer (cheaper than a loan) and you can make higher payments once you wish, HOWEVER if you make smaller payments the interest you will pay does become more.

Got a loan for a car and thinking about getting a life of balance card or rining up one of my existing CC and seeing if they will offer me a lower rate, have read of people getting 1.9 or 2.9%

Pricy147

nh wrote:

So is it a good idea to apply for an IF current account some months before applying for a loan? Maybe use the account a little to build up some history with them? I don't need the loan till September. I have tried to apply for the current account online but can't get cookies to work.

And I have only just applied (and been accepted) for the Halifax moneyback account so should I wait a couple of months before applying to IF?

I applied for the IF loan and current account the same time (pre Stoozing days). i have since applied for a larger loan with them - but been turned down due to my stoozing activities. i dont think the history will make much difference with them to be honest!

nh

Pricy147 wrote:

I applied for the IF loan and current account the same time (pre Stoozing days). i have since applied for a larger loan with them - but been turned down due to my stoozing activities. i dont think the history will make much difference with them to be honest!

I have £40K stoozed at the mo, but I am going to pay it all back when current 0% deals come to an end in May, then I'll be set to apply for new deals when we get back off honeymoon in September.

Fatboy, thanks for the advice, but I don't want a life of balance, I want 0%! I can get a life of balance card, but I don't want to pay even 3.9% (or 1.9%) The offset/flexible loan allows me to do that for as long as the 0% deals are available (forever hopefully) but with a not-too-terrible back-up plan just in case.

Thanks for the explanation tigerr, it makes sense now!

Not a very good rate for stoozing though... would have to just keep enough in to cover the loan!