Advice needed - Credit card repayment

Sam29

Hello.

I have a credit card that I have been slowly paying off. It's balance is £628. It used to be £3400 so I've been chipping away at it.

My other credit card has £3500 on it but is 0% so I'm focusing on the smaller one which charges interest at 10.9%.

Question is how do people maintain momentum of paying off card when it's not high enough balance to be a problem but not low enough to dissappear!?

I want rid of both but can't help getting distracted by the 3.5k when I'm focusing on paying off the other first. Am I doing the right thing. It's hard to feel positive when I'm just making small dents gradually.

Any advice or tips?

CLAPTON

Sam29 wrote: »

Hello.

I have a credit card that I have been slowly paying off. It's balance is £628. It used to be £3400 so I've been chipping away at it.

My other credit card has £3500 on it but is 0% so I'm focusing on the smaller one which charges interest at 10.9%.

Question is how do people maintain momentum of paying off card when it's not high enough balance to be a problem but not low enough to dissappear!?

I want rid of both but can't help getting distracted by the 3.5k when I'm focusing on paying off the other first. Am I doing the right thing. It's hard to feel positive when I'm just making small dents gradually.

Any advice or tips?

well done for reducing the balance from 3,400 unless of course you have simply run up the other card to 3,500 instead.
how long is the 0% on the other card : are you able to pay that off before it become interest bearing?

Ebe_Scrooge

You're doing exactly the right thing by paying off the higher-interest debt first, and only paying the minimum to the 0% card. You really want to be paying as much as you possibly can to the interest-bearing card each month - every month that it carries a balance, you're paying interest.


If you want some encouragement, take a look at the statement every month and see how much interest you've been charged. It may not be a huge amount, but work out how much it'll be over the course of, say, a year.


Once it's paid off, you could even use the interest that you used to be paying to give yourself a little treat every month - or, perhaps more sensibly, pay this amount to the 0% card ( or into a savings account ) in addition to what you're already paying.


Don't forget about the 0% card though. The promotional rate will come to an end at some point, and you need to have plans in place to pay it off, otherwise you'll switch to their standard APR. You could switch it to another 0% card, but of course you'll incur another balance transfer fee, and there's no guarantee that you'll be accepted for another 0% card. So you need to bear this in mind.

PeacefulWaters

You're doing it right.

I would pay an extra £1 a month over and above the minimum payment on the other card.

That way your credit file shows you as paying more than minimum.

manuel_ritz

Just make sure to always pay above the minimum due monthly. You will surely surpass that just don't forget your obligation as they are always helpful all the time.

Sam29

Thanks everyone. 0 percent ends in Dec 2017

I guess it's just a case of digging deep and persevering. I suppose come this far so just got to keep on going.


Regarding the paying just above minimum payment. Does this also apply if I make further payments aswell as direct debit or is this only on file as paying either minimum or fixed amount?