Pay off debt with 0%

Jack1_05

Hiya, I was recently speaking to a colleague of mine who gave me some advice when It comes to paying some debts using credit cards. I was wondering if someone could advise me?

My situation at the moment is that I have £600 I have to pay off on a finance situation by June and a holiday that me and my partner have to pay by March 31st by the sum of £450.

I was advised by my colleague to take out two credit cards, both 0% if i'll get accepted, and on one card pay off the finance and £450 holiday and then balance transfer the balance to the second credit card.

He told me that this way the £1050 will turn into a long term finance deal (in effect) and I will be able to pay that balance off at 0% for the duration of the 0% offer, thus spreading the payments and making it easier to manage.

He advised this is the best way to spread my debts over a longer period of time to make them easier to pay off without paying big charges.

Can someone confirm this for me or if it is incorrect please advise me of the best way to sort this issue?

Thank you for your help, Jack1_05

YorkshireBoy

Can you pay off "the finance" with a credit card?

Won't you incur 2 fees for paying the holiday?...one to the travel agent and another for the BT.

Getting 2 cards up and running by the 31st March may be pushing it a bit, there being only 10 working days left.

chattychappy

I understand what he means. In fact on that basis, only one of the cards needs to be 0%, as the balance would be transferred to that one before interest is applied to the other.

But there are some "ifs".

1) Your "finance situation". You should be more specific. What interest are you paying on it, and when could you pay it back under normal circumstances? Is there a fee if you pay it using a credit card?

2) The holiday - will they accept a credit card? If so, what is the fee?

If you put a purchase onto one card and then transfer the balance to a second, you will usually pay a balance transfer fee - typically 3%.

So you can see, the fees could soon mount up.

There are 0% purchase cards - that way you would avoid a balance transfer fee.

Finally 0% cards are usually hard to get unless you have a good credit rating. Ie good history/income etc etc.

Some will caution against borrowing simply to pay debts - especially if extending them in time. It can work though, so could make sense. So consider your overall position, incomings and outgoings and whether you are simply not on a slippery slope.

jon142

Personally if it was me i would take a look at confused.com etc. pop my details in, it will bring you back a result from doing a "soft" search of what you are likely to be accepted for.

try and get the M&S Money card. ( 15months 0% ) they will give you at least a £1500 limit. thats the start limit.

then i would pay back the £1050 over 10 months of £100 a month.

or less if money was tight. if you get declined don't go on an applying spree as this will damage your rating.

Thanks.

Jack1_05 wrote: »

Hiya, I was recently speaking to a colleague of mine who gave me some advice when It comes to paying some debts using credit cards. I was wondering if someone could advise me?

My situation at the moment is that I have £600 I have to pay off on a finance situation by June and a holiday that me and my partner have to pay by March 31st by the sum of £450.

I was advised by my colleague to take out two credit cards, both 0% if i'll get accepted, and on one card pay off the finance and £450 holiday and then balance transfer the balance to the second credit card.

He told me that this way the £1050 will turn into a long term finance deal (in effect) and I will be able to pay that balance off at 0% for the duration of the 0% offer, thus spreading the payments and making it easier to manage.

He advised this is the best way to spread my debts over a longer period of time to make them easier to pay off without paying big charges.

Can someone confirm this for me or if it is incorrect please advise me of the best way to sort this issue?

Thank you for your help, Jack1_05

Jack1_05

Thanks for everyone's help so far!, my girlfriend and I have sat down and worked it out and are happy to pay the holiday off with cash and are now looking at a way to get rid off just the £700 on the finance.

Would it be possible to get a card and pay the finance off with that and then pay the £700 off of the card at 0% for how ever many months without incurring a fee?

Thanks again people.

YorkshireBoy

Jack1_05 wrote: »

Would it be possible to get a card and pay the finance off with that and then pay the £700 off of the card at 0% for how ever many months without incurring a fee?

You need to define what "the finance" is. Otherwise the only answer you'll get is 'possibly'. And I'm guessing that won't help you greatly?

Jack1_05

Hiya, I'm still looking for help so if anyone has an idea that'd be great.

My and my girlfriend have paid off the holiday in cash, so now I only have the £700 finance I'm looking to get rid of. It's with Hitatchi capital and I've spoken to them about paying it off with a credit card at a 2.5% handling fee which i'm fine with.

I'm now wondering if I got the 0% on balance transfers and all purchases credit card from Tesco could I just pay that finance off with the credit card and then spread the payments over the 15 months with free 0%?

If I done this would the only charge I get be the 2.5% handling fee from Hitatchi capital?

Thanks, Jack