Best Balance Transfers Discussion Area

Moggles_2

Congratulations peanut on turning things round
:beer:

peanut1964 wrote: »

I now need to transfer my Credit Card balance, but who would accept me as I do seem to have a poor credit history, either myself or by association with my husband?

Well, you need to find out which it is. The three credit reference agencies (CRAs) have a statutory obligation to provide you with your credit file and charge no more than £2. If you apply using the links provided on page 1 of the *How to obtain credit reports* sticky, you'll be able to see at first hand the data UK lenders search, when you apply for a new credit card.

Some things are relatively straightforward to put right, others take time. Either way the sooner it's tackled the better.

peanut1964

Thank you Moggles,

I got a Credit Report about 9 months ago for both my husband and myself in Experian (30 day Free Trial offer) Then cancelled.
There were a couple of things that were wrong, which I had corrected. The main problem was my husbands 2 CCJ (which have now been paid) but still on file for up to 6 years ?? No CCJ's on my report, a couple of late payments, and a couple of defaults (which have also now been paid up in full or regular ongoing payments)
We re-mortgaged back in April 2008 and the lender was fairly happy with our credit history, and we got a so so good rate, so why is Barclaycard being soooooooo defiant and not willing to compromise in anyway?
Debt is good, but not bad debt, they obviously feel that my credit history keeps me tied to them, as long as I keep making the payments They know it's difficault for me to transfer. Banking industries GRRRRRRRR

A Confused little Peanut

RQ81

Hi Folks,

I'm new to this site and was wondering what the best option would be for me when I travel to South America for 6 weeks in March. Basically I got a loan for the holiday, and was hoping to use a credit card to access the money. What should I be looking for in a credit card, seeing as I will hopefully always be in the "black". Will 0% balance transfers matter if i "load" the card up before travelling. I also have a credit card with the bank i have the loan out with and was hoping to split the money between the 2 cards for safety reasons. Does this seem like a good idea?

peanut1964

I have set myself a target this year to reduce my debt as much as possible, by either changing providers/Lenders, transferring, cutting down or downgrading. I have been doing OK, but I am having trouble with Barclaycard, who I have been with for over 7 years. For the past 2 years they are not willing to budge, :mad: and silly me have taken it .............. but not this time.

I have a Barclaycard balance of £550.
Purchase Rate 19.9%
Cash rate 27.9%

My minimum payment is usually around £10-15 per month, but I usually pay around £30 per month, but I want to clear the balance faster.

I contacted them today and informed them that I need to reduce my balance quicker or I may transfer, can they offer me anything better. They would not budge, :mad: :mad: saying that there is nothing they can do at the moment, as they go by past history, credit scoring etc.

My husband & I had a major financial blip when our self employed business went under. We have finally paid back every penny to our creditors, but at the expense of our credit scoring. In the last year all bills have been paid on time and the right amount. Barclaycard are really STINGING us. I just want to see the back of them now.

I now need to transfer my Credit Card balance, but who would accept me ?????????
as I do seem to have a poor credit history, either myself or by association with my husband. I will not be purchasing on the new card.

Please can someone give me some advise on which Credit Card lenders would suit me (Poor credit history) with a 0% balance for as long as possible. Or at lease a lender with a much lower annual rate over a good period.

Would appreciate any advise.

Thank you

Saved today::T
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JimmyTheWig

peanut1964 wrote: »

I have set myself a target this year to reduce my debt as much as possible
...
I have a Barclaycard balance of £550.
Purchase Rate 19.9%
Cash rate 27.9%
My minimum payment is usually around £10-15 per month, but I usually pay around £30 per month, but I want to clear the balance faster.
...
I do seem to have a poor credit history

I'm going to take a slightly different approach to this.
The credit crunch means that banks have less money to lend out. This means that they pick the best people for the best deals.
From what you have said, then, I am not convinced that you would get one of the best deals.

You haven't said how much of your debt is purchases and how much is cash. I'll assume, then, an average interest rate of 24%.

I've been playing around with numbers in
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cards/minimum-repayments-credit-card#calc

If you pay £30 a month then you will pay £124 interest over 23 months.

If you could get a better deal, say 10%, then you'd pay just £47 over 20 months. So you can solve most of your problems by getting the interest rate down a bit - doesn't necessarily have to be to 0%.
Do you have any other credit cards with a lower rate for purchases or balance transfers?

Alternatively, if you can pay £50 a month then even on your 24% rate you will only pay £69 in interest over 13 months.
Or paying off an extra £50 now then continuing with your £30 a month (i.e. pay £80 this month) your interest will reduce to £100 over 21 months.

If you can combine any of these then all the better. E.g. pay £50 a month with an extra £50 right now at a rate of 10% and you'll only be paying £23 interest in 11 months.

So is there anything you can do to get the debt down? Have you got anything worth selling on eBay or at a car boot? Can you or your husband take on a second job (bar work, cleaning, pizza delivery, etc)? Can you take in a lodger?
Or are there other areas where you can cut back and put this money against the credit card?

JimmyTheWig

Alternatively, how do you pay for things like shopping and petrol? If you currently pay by cash / debit card you might want to consider paying on credit card and using the money in your bank account to make a payment against your credit card straight away. My thinking is that if you spend £125 a week then you could "recycle" this debt each month. And because you are paying off your balance in full each month then you wouldn't pay interest. This would take some serious discipline, however, to ensure you were actually paying everything back to your card that you should be.

Moggles_2

RQ81 wrote: »

I was wondering what the best option would be when I travel to South America for 6 weeks in March. Basically I got a loan for the holiday, and was hoping to use a credit card to access the money. What should I be looking for in a credit card, seeing as I will hopefully always be in the "black"? Will 0% balance transfers matter if I "load" the card up before travelling. I also have a credit card with the bank I have the loan out with and was hoping to split the money between the 2 cards for safety reasons. Does this seem like a good idea?

Personally, I wouldn't risk this. Credit cards - other than Egg Money - are not designed to carry a positive balance. Small amounts that arise temporarily (due to a refund, for instance) are okay, but the Ts & Cs usually prohibit payments/balance transfers that deliberately place the account in credit.

If you were to attempt a cash withdrawal in S. America, their systems would automatically apply a cash advance fee and you'd be charged cash withdrawal interest rates, even though it's your money, but it gets worse.

An horrendous story was posted on this board last year involving a honeymooner who had topped up his/her Halifax card to increase their spending power whilst abroad. Within days the Hally had locked their card and, whilst sympathetic, staff were unable to reverse the decision. Needless to say, their honeymoon in the USA was ruined.

Your post raises some other issues, unconnected with balance transfers, and you may get replies more quickly, if you post again on the main credit card board

peanut1964

Jimmy the Wig,

Some very useful avenues to think about. I am near my limit so I cannot "recycle. I have already taken on a small second job, and my husband works all hours. I use eBay and normally my selling once a year pays for the major christmas bills. I made a consious decision to tighen my belt this year and I think that if I cannot transfer to a better deal I will have to be more frugle and save that extra per month and put it towards the Credit Card bill.
It's quite surprising how much the interest drops by paying that little extra.

Thank you for taking the time to post more options to consider.

A more positive Peanut

The_Pawnbroker

Most of us are trying to get out of some sort of debt spiral these days, so it's refreshing to read an article that presents useful advice which may actually help us beat the banks at their own game.

peanut1964

I hope that The Pawnbroker is not trying to advertise own wares or for personal gain.