0% balance transfer questions

[Elgin526]

Right now all of our CC debt is on a single credit card (Citibank) that is at 0% interest. That will expire in June. Obvioulsy I want to transfer it to another 0% offer since it won't be paid off by then.

In addition to Citibank, I already have cards with Chase and Capitol One. The Chase is used for all our monthly purchases and paid off monthly. The Capitol One card is in a drawer and hasn't been used since I did my initial balance transfer.

My first question is, If I see that either Chase or Capitol One has a 0% offer that I like (and I don't know if they do, I haven't checked yet), can I apply for a new card from either of them and get the 0% offer, or are 0% offers only for brand new customers?

My second question is, if my 0% offer that I have with Citibank expires in June, when should I initiate another balance transfer so I don't have to pay Citibank any interest? I don't want to do it too soon, but if I wait too long, it may not transfer fast enough and I'll have a balance when the offer expires, and they'll charge me.

[neatdesign]

Re: 0% balance transfer questions

Question #1 - If I see that either Chase or Capitol One has a 0% offer that I like (and I don't know if they do, I haven't checked yet), can I apply for a new card from either of them and get the 0% offer, or are 0% offers only for brand new customers?

That will depend on the specific terms of the individual offer. Most likely, you do not need to be a new customer in order to qualify. People are allowed to have multiple credit cards with the same company, after all. However, if the offer states it's only for new customers, then it's only for new customers. As with any credit card offer, read the fine print. Then read it again. Then read it a third time.


Question #2 - If my 0% offer that I have with Citibank expires in June, when should I initiate another balance transfer so I don't have to pay Citibank any interest?

Answer #2 - Generally speaking, most credit card companies will say to allow anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 weeks for a balance transfer to go through, but only AFTER your application has been approved -- and that takes additional time. If you're applying for a brand new account, I would aim for doing the application 4 to 6 weeks before your Citibank 0% expiration date to allow enough time for BOTH the application and the BT to be processed. If you're simply transferring to an existing account, though, you could do it 2 to 3 weeks before Citibank's 0% expiration and you should be ok.

(BTW, having previously worked for Capital One, I can tell you that your chances of getting 0% BT offer on an existing account is somewhere between zero and none.)

~ Jenney

[Elgin526]

Re: 0% balance transfer questions

Groovy! I'll apply for a new account (with whoever) late March/early April and do the balance transfer once I get approved, that should get it taken care of before my offer expires in June.

Thanks for that tip on CapOne, my credit is excellent so I still have plenty of other CC companies to choose from.

[Tree0164]

Re: 0% balance transfer questions

It really depends. Call them up and ask what can you do for a balance transfer let them know that you are getting 0% offers.....

[kv968]

Re: 0% balance transfer questions

Thanks for that tip on CapOne, my credit is excellent so I still have plenty of other CC companies to choose from.

If you keep applying for credit and bouncing from cc to cc, your excellent credit may start being not so excellent so be careful.