£10k on credit cards - Way out of debt?

Jon_J

I have £10k on credit cards, some on 0% for 6 months however it appears the regular balance transfers are now catching up with me. It is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain any large credit limits.
I also considering remortgaging?

What should I do? Incorporate the card debt onto the mortgage, take a life of balance rate or keep moving balances?

Debt_Free_Chick

If you have several credit cards with money owed on each, then you may find it difficult to get another card. Clearing a balance and cancelling the card may help, but you still have to wait (6 months is the generally considered about right) before applying for another card.

You say

It is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain any large credit limits.

As well as looking at current debts, lenders also look at your total available credit. So if you have £15,000 worth of credit limit, they wonder why you want more - even if you've only used £10k of it.

Are you actually paying anything off your debt? Perhaps you are living above your means, meaning that you are simply servicing your debt without really tackling it. To pay off debt you need to cut back on all other expenditure, ditch any unnecessary expenditure for a while and look to increase your income, by taking another job and/or flogging stuff on ebay etc.

You then take the savings from your reduced expenditure and the extra income and use that to pay off the debt.

You should prioritise the debt too so that you pay off the one with the highest rate of interest first.

I also considering remortgaging?

What should I do? Incorporate the card debt onto the mortgage, take a life of balance rate or keep moving balances?

Remortgaging - not a good idea. Firstly, it will take you longer to pay off the debt. You may pay a lower interest rate, but you'll be paying it over a longer period of time.

Also, personal debt (credit cards) is unsecured. If it came to the worst and you couldn't pay it back, you can agree a repayment plan with the lenders. If you transfer the debt to your mortgage, the lenders can force you to sell your house if you can't manage the mortgage payments.

If you can get a low rate on a life of balance transfer, fine. But you must have a plan to repay the debt and, perhaps, adjust your standard of living for good.

HTH