Reducing Credit Card Debt

A serious financial problem people face today is credit card debt. The interest rates on most credit cards are very high. Many are over 20% apr. Reducing credit card debt can be difficult when all you can do is pay the minimum fees each month. If you find yourself in this situation it could take years to pay off those credit cards!

One of the ways to reduce credit card debt is to lower the interest rates of your credit cards, but to continue making the same payments on those cards as you did before your rate reduction. This will enable you to pay down more on the principal balance of your credit cards.

How do you go about getting your creditors to reduce your credit card rates?
The first thing you need to do is find several credit card companies that offer a lower interest rate on balance transfers. You don’t have to apply for them- you just need to let your current creditors know they have some competition for your business.

Do your research and explore your options. Look for credit card companies online with the lower interest rates, make note of them so you can refer to them later. Now you will need to make a few phone calls. Call each of your creditors and tell them this, in your own words.

“Hello, I have the opportunity of reducing my credit card debt by transferring my balance to some of your competitors that are offering lower interest rates on balance transfers. For instance, _____________, _____________, and ______________, are offering ______ interest rate on balance transfers that is currently ________ percent lower than what I am receiving on this card. Would you be willing to give me this rate so I do not need to transfer my balance?”

You can change this script to reflect the information that you find.  The key factor is to do the research and then present it to each credit card company that you use currently. You may not be able to get every company to comply, but for every bank that does, you’ll see that reducing credit card debt is not as hard as you think.  You will also find that many credit card companies will waive their annual fee as well.  There is no need to pay for the privilege of having their credit card.

Once you’ve lowered your credit card interest rates, make sure you continue to pay more than the minimum payment required. This will help you to keep your goal of reducing your credit card debt.