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Advice about credit cards please.

Bess09
Posts: 32 Forumite
I have 2 credit cards, Barclaycard on which I owe £3,593 (apr 15.9% and available credit £8,406) and Capital One on which I owe £ 2,913. (apr 15.8% and available credit £2086 ). I don't have an overdraft.
I haven't used these cards for years and am paying them off at a bit more than the minimum payment each month - varying this as I can afford more.
I have read lots on this site and following advice from Martin rang Capital One to see if they would reduce my interest rate, they wouldn't, so I asked what the rate would be for me to transfer another card's debts to them and they said 15.9%.
I've read about the balance transfer to Barclays for existing customers and I may ask but that would still leave me with the Capital One debt.
Can anyone advise me please?
I haven't used these cards for years and am paying them off at a bit more than the minimum payment each month - varying this as I can afford more.
I have read lots on this site and following advice from Martin rang Capital One to see if they would reduce my interest rate, they wouldn't, so I asked what the rate would be for me to transfer another card's debts to them and they said 15.9%.
I've read about the balance transfer to Barclays for existing customers and I may ask but that would still leave me with the Capital One debt.
Can anyone advise me please?
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Comments
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I have 2 credit cards, Barclaycard on which I owe £3,593 (apr 15.9% and available credit £8,406) and Capital One on which I owe £ 2,913. (apr 15.8% and available credit £2086 ). I don't have an overdraft.
I haven't used these cards for years and am paying them off at a bit more than the minimum payment each month - varying this as I can afford more.
I have read lots on this site and following advice from Martin rang Capital One to see if they would reduce my interest rate, they wouldn't, so I asked what the rate would be for me to transfer another card's debts to them and they said 15.9%.
I've read about the balance transfer to Barclays for existing customers and I may ask but that would still leave me with the Capital One debt.
Can anyone advise me please?
Have you tried to apply for a CC elsewhere to BT over the difference, I have a BC and I get offers coming in to transfer balance at 0%, you could always ask BC if they have any offers for BT, then BT over your Cap1 and then close account, last thing you want to do is respend on Cap1.I all have learnt is from others on many sites.
Seek legal help if unsure.
Dont pay Private Parking tickets - they are mere invoices.
PRESS THANKS
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Thanks for replying your Highness.
No, I haven't done anything else yet, I have been following Martin's advice and started at the beginning.
I thought about doing as you suggest and it's a good idea, but I'd like to get rid of the existing BC debt as well, which I can't transfer to a low BT with them of course..
There's absolutely no danger of me using the cards again, ever!0 -
If your credit rating is good you can apply for a new 0% APR credit card and transfer the balance over.
You hope that they give you a bigger enough CL to transfer over both or at least get rid of the most expensive one.I all have learnt is from others on many sites.
Seek legal help if unsure.
Dont pay Private Parking tickets - they are mere invoices.
PRESS THANKS
}0 -
Hmm.. I just tried that with my bank, Nationwide and they are offering a £1,500 limit for 17 months interest free. I didn't accept it. Wish it had been enough to cover one of the amounts fully, wonder what I should do?
The apr after 17 months was 19.9%, so I'd need to be sure I paid it all off, it comes to about £90 pcm, that'd be ok, but then I'll have 3 cards I suppose, does that matter?
Just thinking again - I do have an M & S storecard which I took out a few years ago when they were offering 2.9% for the life of the balance, I owe £377 on that but as the interest is so low have been trying to pay the other higher interest cards the most first. I could write off this card completely and I'm wondering now if that would be a good idea. Do lenders take into the number of cards I have or the amount I owe in deciding to offer me a credit card?
Have just rung Barclays and they have offered 6.9% for a BT of £7,253 so that would take care of the Capital One card. Assuming that I then pay off the M&S store card I would then only have one credit card, BC. Would I then be able to get another card to pay off the larger amount still owing to BC? I don't really know how all this works and don't want to race around applying for things if that will adversely affect my credit rating.
Help please!0 -
I'd start by asking Nationwide if you can have that £1500 card after all and progress from there.
At the moment £1500 of debt on your Barclaycard would cost you £183.37 in interest if you were paying £100 a month off. If you moved the £1500 to the Nationwide card you'd not pay that £183.37 interest and the Nationwide card would be just about paid off in 17 months.Debt-free day: 8th May 2015 "Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck," Dalai Llama0 -
Thanks Ally, much appreciated, I'm going to see what advice I get here, think about it then act. About time I sorted this stuff out, I just feel all at sea and need to find out things before I do.
Glad to see you are so happily married - it just gets better and better!0 -
Any more thoughts out there please?0
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Why don't you have a look at the snowball calculator and see what difference doing balance transfers make?
http://www.whatsthecost.com/
Personally, if you have no other available cards, I would get the nationwide card transfer as much as possible from barclaycard to nationwide probs £1350 - they like you to have 10% clear usually), then transfer your full capital one balance to barclaycard.
That would leave you with £1350 plus transfer fee at 0%, £2243 on barclaycard at 15.9% and £2913 at 6.9% (plus transfer fee). When you pay barclaycard it will pay the highest interest first.Debt free by Dec 2011
#178 Pay as as much as you can in 2011 £2305.80/£7489.27#114 Crazy clothes challenge £60/£60
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#139 Virtual sealed pot challenge £15.500 -
Thanks Monicamj, That's pretty much what I'd been thinking after yesterday, but it's good to know that's a good move. I've never looked at this before (how stupid am I?) but after finding this site I am going to change things. I'll look at the site you mention, thankyou, it's new to me.
Just one other thing - I could apply for a loan from my bank, NW. I think the rate is about 6 or 7%. I wonder if they'd lend me a higher amount than they would on the CC and if so I could pay off one of the other cards, or more off it....thing is, in asking about a loan doesn't that affect my credit score? I don't really know about these things. Can I even talk to them about the options so I have a better idea of what to do?
If there anyone, (a bit like a financial adviser), who I could go to who'd know the best options available? I feel so new to all this and although there's such a lot of info on here, there's almost too much. Wouldn't it be great if Martin could advise me personally? Is there someone who does this kind of thing? Does anyone now?0 -
Do not connsolidate your cards into a loan, it will almost certainly cost you more in the end; banks do not do this out of the goodness of their hearts.
One very sensible thig would be to reduce the credit limits on your existing cards, as having available unused credit makes you unattractive to other creditors.If you've have not made a mistake, you've made nothing0
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