Just like every other type of credit card feature, this lifetime balance transfer deal is also subject to several different companies who offer different rates and different rewards.  It’s up to us, here at credit card comparison, to help you make an informed decision on the credit cards that feature the most predominantly.

MBNA have a credit card that will offer you 6.7% interest on the lifetime of your balance transfer.  It is very important to verify this here and now because many people get the impression that this interest rate will be the same on your entire balance with MBNA; it won’t.  This is only for your balance transfer.  So let’s just say you’ve transferred a balance of £2000 and then you spend a further £1000 on the credit card.  The £2000 balance you transfered will be subject to the 6.7% interest and not the extra £1000 you spent on top of that.

MBNA offer a good credit card here if you’re not silly enough to spend a load more on it.  And it works out the very best way to shift a debt if you can pay it off in at least 4 years.

You could go for a credit card that offers you a significantly lower interest rate on your balance transfer for life, rather than up to 15 months.  This is handy for those people who are unable to keep up with the constant swapping of balances in order to avoid paying any interest.  Personally i think that the life balance transfer deal is a good one, and depending on how good the credit card is, it’s a real winner if you want to be loyal to one card.

You can always swap your balance a few times until you find the life balance transfer deal that suits you, and this is a very shrewd move since you bring the balance down even more.  Then when you finally find the card that suits you best of all you can enjoy comfortably low interest rates for life on the balance of your old credit card.  Be careful not to assume that you get this low rate on everything however!

So basically when you have a balance of more than you can handle, all you do is apply for another credit card and transfer the balance.  You don’t really have to do anything except write your credit card balance on the application for the new credit card, and if you you’re successful then you’ll end up with a credit card bill completely paid off, leaving you free to close the account if you want, and also a new credit card with a 0% interest on it.

The 0% interest thing is very important of course, and the most important thing about it is the length of time the credit card is prepared to allow you to have your balance transfer for 0% interest.  The time periods vary, but most of them these days are offering around 12-15 months interest free; which is pretty damn good by anyone’s standards if you ask us, and more than enough time for you to make a good attempt at paying off that balance.

This is an excellent way to get money for nothing folks.  If you’re wise and you take out cashback credit cards with 0% interest on balance transfers then you can spend up to your limit and then transfer your balance; thus paying no interest.  You have got the cashback and then you have time to pay off the bill.  You could also transfer again, but watch out for the cards that charge you for transfers.

Believe me folks, the days of loyalty to your credit card are gone; hell, the days of loyalty to anything are long gone aren’t they?  I know a guy who has worked his entire life for a local council just get a handshake and a damn carriage clock after 40 years service!  If you can’t beat them join them, and start with your finances.

There are bonuses to doing this too.  Not only do you get a credit card that performs better for you, but you also get to pay 0% interest for a while if you choose the right credit card.  Now this has to be a bonus; especially if you were managing the interest payments quite nicely anyway, it will give you a little breathing space and maybe afford you a night out or something.

Most credit cards offer you around 6 months interest free on your balance transfers, but there are some who offer much more than this, and also 0% interest on your purchases too.  You should always look out for this however, because you could end up with a balance that has interest payments you can’t make once they start charging you.

Well Egg came about in the late 1990s as one of those fashionable, friendly style, financial institutions.  These days they still try to be cool, but they’re just not at the same level as credit card providers like Virgin for example.  Their offers aren’t too bad though, and that’s why i’ve decided to give them a little review.

Their main strategy at the moment seems to be getting people to trust credit again, and make it appear as though it doesn’t cost you much.  This is ok if you can afford to pay in the long run, but if you’re attracted by this because you don’t think you can pay the interest on a credit card then you seriously need to avoid Egg.  They offer a fantasitc 0% interest on balance transfers until 1st April 2011.  Now that is really something, and to top it off they are also offering 0% interest on your purchases until 1st May 2010.  Remember though folks, May isn’t that far away, and it will soon creep up on you.

Egg Credit Card has interest rates that pretty much compare with everyone else these days at 16.9%, and they also offer their pretty unique Egg money manager tool online.  This tool allows you to manage all your accounts, not just Egg, in one place. This is so unique because it isn’t particularly useful in my opinion.

Overall if you want low interest rates on balance transfers choose Egg, otherwise there are many others to go for.

This is the good old balance transfer strategy of course.  I remember when people started talking about this about 20 years ago, and about how they have cheated the credit card company by not paying them back the balance of their account, or any interest.  It was naive then, and it is now, but it no less useful!

You can indeed spend up to your limit and then make no payments at all.  What you can then do is transfer the balance to another credit card company at 0% interest for around 6 months, and before you know it you only ever end up paying the minimum amount to your credit card.  As soon as you are due to be charged any interest on your credit card balance, simply transfer the balance.

It all depends on your credit rating really, just how acheivable this is, and the problem is that it’s usually the people who have enough money not to bother with ideas like this, are the ones who are enabled to actually do it!  But you never know.  And this is why it’s a good idea not to max out your card before you’ve attempted at least one balance transfer.

Try it out, but be careful and compare the credit cards carefully (reading all the small print!)

Alternatively you can use a credit card comparison website such as this one in order to find the credit cards that are offering the best deals on credit card transfers.  For those of you who are unawar, a transfers are a way of moving the balance of one credit card to another credit card, usually in order to pay no interest on you card; now it doesn’t always work like this you know, and sometimes you can get burned.

When it works best is when you are paying back in excess of say £50 per month on goods you bought ages ago.  This shows that your balance is hardly going down and that perhas now is the time for your retirment.  But you can swap you overall balance on the account to a credit card that offers 0% interest for a limited period.

What you have to do is do a simple credit card comparison.  Many sites these days have databases and various different menus etc to allow you to compare your credit cards in a particular way.  So what you need to do is compare balance transfers.

You need to transfer the balance of the credit card you are going to struggle with, to one that allows you a lower rate of interest, or if at all possible, no interest at all for a limited time.  This should buy you a little time, and if you’re really shrewd you can compare credit cards again when this limited time runs out, just to see if you can do it again.  I know it’s time consuming, but it’s certainly worthwhile doing, and you can save yourself pounds and pounds.

MBNA offer a balance transfer rate of 0% at the moment until September 2010.  This is perfect, but i must confess to not having read the small print, and besides there isn’t room here for me to write it all out for you.  Be sure to always do this when you compare credit cards.

Halifax also offer 0% interest on balance transfers, but this is just for nine months, so not as good as MBNA.  However, what you must consider when comparing credit cards like these two is that both of them then have a typical APR of 15.0% which is quite high.  Unless you are able to transfer balance again it may not be worth it in the long run.

            When looking at credit card comparison sites, one can be overwhelmed by the flood of facts and figures facing him. Some of these figures may not be immediately understandable by the layman.  To assist in making some of the data understandable, particularly those pertaining to the balance transfer feature of a credit card, I would be presenting some simple facts to assist the tables of comparisons that you will find in the site.

            Balance transfer is a good alternative for someone with a huge credit card loan.  What the consumer needs to do is transfer that loan to another credit card that offers this scheme.  The advantage of transferring the loan balance is mainly to get longer payment terms and getting lower interest rates.  However, not all cards have uniform rates and fees.  It is therefore important to compare first before choosing the card that could answer this need. 

            Balance transfer schemes come in different forms.  There is what is called 0% balance transfer cards, 0% interest on balance transfer cards, low interest rate balance transfer and the lifetime balance transfer credit cards.  I will be elaborating on the latter type of balance transfer.

            Lifetime balance transfer credit cards are those that apply a low interest rate in the loan for a period of more than one year.  There are cards that offer up to five year payment term.  This type of credit card is very ideal to those with large debts who wanted their debt restructured and stretched over a longer period of time.  Despite the name, lifetime balance transfer cards do not offer a lifetime promotional rate.  One or five year period is hardly a lifetime.  However, these lifetime balance transfer cards often apply a very low annual percentage rate (APR) compared to the normal interest rates.  The standard APR for balance transfers is 17.27%.  Translated to monthly interest rate, this is only a mere 1.43% monthly interest compared to the normal credit card interest rates that ranges from 2% to 3.5% monthly.  This is even better than an unsecured loan. 

            Now how does a consumer know if this is the best type of card for him?  Those with existing loans that are starting to become unmanageable; this credit card scheme is for you.  To those who hate transferring their loans from one card to another every time the 0% interest rate is over, then this card is again for you.  For those who do not know which credit cards offer this scheme, the information is available online, with just a click of your fingers.  Just look closely, compare, and you cannot go wrong.

First, let’s go into the terms. A credit card balance transfer means transporting your debt from one card to another in the form of consolidation. Credit card balance transfer is found to be a more easy way to move your debts simply from one card to the other and likewise saving money at that. These offers are very attractive to consumers due to the fact that besides many companies are offering periods which are free of interest for new customers, you can also find lower interest rates with credit card balance transfer offers. But how does this work? Upon applying for a new credit card and it was luckily accepted, you are now eligible to transfer your current or existing balance to your new card issuer. Your new card issuer then has the access to your old card. Of course you are entitled to give to your new issuer the details of that card. And as soon as you are given your new card, you can now enjoy transferring your balances. But you are to watch out for the transfer fees. These are often fees accounted whenever you transfer any transaction. Also, before applying for one, compare credit card balance transfer offers. Here are some points.

• 1. Compare credit card balance transfer offers looking at the size of your balance transfer. Also, focus on the interest rates and fees.
• 2. Compare credit card balance transfer offers according to the terms of interest rate free period indicated. It is however best to avail from the lengthiest interest free period offer.
• 3. When you compare credit card balance transfer offers, be sure to have a rough estimate on the amount of which you are going to spend on the credit card per month and the amount you are likely to pay per month including the interest if there is any.
• 4. Be aware of your existing credit card’s interest rate, annual fees, and benefits.
• 5. Compare credit card transfer offers in terms of miscellaneous fees and the presence of transaction fees.

Research on the many companies that offer credit card balance transfers and compare their advantages as well as their disadvantages, Weigh things first. The property of the credit card must suit your ability to pay and control spending. Be wise to look out for certain misleading points when you have already availed for a credit card balance transfer. Check out each item that you purchase. If there is no 0% rate for those items, then automatically you have to pay for the standard interest rate and any repayments made will be accounted to your balance transfer. Therefore you will have to pay the interest on purchases until you have fully paid for the balance transfer transaction. On the other hand, if you have been accepted for a credit card that has 0% on the entirety of the balance which has been transferred, be careful for the “minimum monthly spend” clause. This is often issued by many credit card companies though. This clause means that your failure to pay for the minimum payables means paying the standard interest rates on all purchases.