Borrowing against your home equity is one of the best ways to consolidate your debts and I’ll not argue against it. It is a known fact – because you’ll get to enjoy lower interest rates and better payment terms.
It is not the end of the world though, if you do not own a home. There are still ways out – the second best solution would be to make use of your good credit rating (if you still enjoy now) to help consolidate your debts.
Credit Card Balance Transfer
This is simply the process of transferring your high interest credit card balances to another credit card with lower interest. This is done so to reduce your monthly interest payment and can help to pay off your debts faster.
Things to Look Out for Before You Transfer Your Card Balances
Ask for fixed interest rate for your new credit card transferred balances – this ensure that you pay a fixed amount every month and help you in preparing and executing your budget plan.
Ask your credit card companies if they can waive the credit card balance transfer fees – savings on the transfer fees can be use to repay your balance. This is a fee which most banks can waive.
Ask all your existing credit card companies on their interest rates and payment terms if you transfer all your other card balances to them. (Remember to ask for lower interest and better repayment terms, since you are consolidating your card balances.) Compare all your options and choose the one which you are most comfortable with.
Debt consolidation with credit card balances transfer work best if you still enjoy good credit ratings. This is because offered interest rates and payment terms are heavily weighted on your current credit rating and score.
Nevertheless, this should not stop you for asking your credit card companies even if you have poor credit rating. It is still worthwhile to transfer your card balances if you can only save a little on your interest rate every month. Every little step helps when you are consolidating your debts.
