4 Ways to Use Credit to Get Out Of Debt- From Mint.com

If you are having trouble paying off credit card debt, you need help.

Paying off a large balance can be one of the most difficult challenges in personal finance, but there are some resources and strategies that can help you.

Here are a few of the credit tools out there that make the task of paying off your debt a little easier.

Balance Transfer Credit Cards

One of the tools for getting out of debt can be credit cards with 0% APR balance transfer offers. Once an applicant is approved for a card with one of these offers, he or she can transfer their existing balances to their new account.


The cardholders will no longer incur interest on their existing balances, but most of these offers will add a 3% balance transfer fee to their new balance.

These offers last between six and 18 months until the card’s standard interest rate applies.

The benefit is that cardholders no longer incur interest charges on their new balance, and all of their payments count against the principal.

And with no interest charges, the balance can be paid down more quickly.

On the other hand, some cardholders can see this temporary break from interest payments as an excuse not to pay down their debt until a later time.

This strategy only works if the cardholder is extremely disciplined and committed to paying down their credit card debt.

Interest-Free Financing Offers

Like balance transfer offers, many credit cards offer new applicants the chance to save money by offering 0% APR financing on new purchases.

These cards allow customers to continue to receive the convenience and security of their credit cards, without being charged interest on all their purchases.

When these savings on interest are used to pay off debt, the result is that cardholders can pay off their balances more quickly.

Low-Interest Credit Cards

After cards with 0% APR promotional financing offers, credit cards with low interest rates are the next best way to reduce interest payments.

For example, some credit cards had an APR of just 6.25% at publishing time. Nevertheless, applicants will have to have excellent credit in order to be approved for the best offers.

Credit Card Repayment Calculators

Thanks to the CARD Act of 2009, banks are now required to issue monthly statements that show cardholders how long it will take them to pay off their balance if they only make the minimum payment, and how much cardholders can save if they pay their balance off in only three years.

Read this and other articles from Mint.com.