What are common traps with balance transfer credit cards?
People often fall into balance transfer cards problems because of the unexpected end of the introductory APR period (0% purchase APR for 12-18 month) or a failure to understand the terms of the intro APR.
Here are some typical situations with balance transfers:
- It is common to get a 0% intro APR on purchases only and not on balance transfers. Pay attention to the exact terms of the card APR.
- Intro balance transfer 0% APR applies usually to the balance transfer, made within a 30-90 days of the account, usually, 3% BT fee applies to the amount of the transfer. Make sure to understand and take into account all fees.
Some cards don't have a penalty APR and don't charge you a late payment fee. Some examples are Chase Slate or Barclaycard Ring card.
| regular APR | |
fair credit required
no annual fee
0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers
0% BT fee for 60 days
free FICO score
