A Crucial Approach for Managing Your Credit Card Debt
If you have a credit card balance, you’re probably eager to pay it off quickly. However, this can be tough if you’re dealing with a high interest rate. Many credit cards today have interest rates of 20% or more, making it feel impossible to get ahead.
You do have options, but not all are equal, and some are more drastic than others. One option worth considering could lower your interest rate to as low as 0.99% APR.
### How You Could Cut Your Credit Card Interest Rate to as Low as 0.99% APR
If you’re carrying high-interest credit card debt, you’re essentially wasting money. One option to consider is a balance-transfer card. This could be a good fit for your situation. It works by transferring your current credit card balance to a new card with a much lower interest rate, allowing you to pay down your balance instead of having a large portion of your payments go toward interest.
For example, the Navy Federal Credit Union Platinum Card offers 0.99% APR for the first 12 months with no balance-transfer fee. This gives you a break from high interest rates for a year while you work on paying down your balance. After the first year, the card has a variable APR between 11.24% and 18%.
### Why Use a Balance-Transfer Card?
Some credit card debt can be paid off quickly, but that’s not always the case. If you need to make a large purchase or have existing credit card debt, opening a balance-transfer card can be a smart move. Assuming you have average to excellent credit, you can benefit from the lower interest rate of a balance-transfer card. If you have multiple credit cards, this can also simplify your payments.
Additionally, it might help improve your credit score. Reducing your total debt and improving your credit utilization ratio can positively impact your credit score, according to Equifax.
### How to Stop Wasting Money on Credit Card Interest
Want to cut back on those high interest rates on your credit card balance? It’s easy to get started with an NFCU Platinum card and start saving on interest. When you transfer outside balances within 60 days of opening your account, you’ll get a 0.99% introductory APR on balance transfers for 12 months. Compare that to the more than 20% most people are paying, and it could save you a lot of money.
After that, you’ll receive a variable APR of 11.24% to 18%, and there are no balance transfer fees. This can save you a significant amount on interest and fees compared to similar products from other financial institutions. For example, some popular cards have over 30% variable APR and others have a 5% balance-transfer fee.
Other key benefits of the NFCU Platinum Card include no annual fees, foreign-transaction fees, or cash-advance fees. Plus, all NFCU credit cards come with 24/7 access to stateside member reps, the ability to freeze and unfreeze your cards, a zero liability policy for unauthorized transactions, fraud notifications, and access to your credit score.
### The Bottom Line
If you have a credit card balance, paying interest is part of the deal. But there’s no need to pay more than necessary. The NFCU Platinum card keeps fees to a minimum, so you can pay your balance down as quickly as possible. Apply now to see how much you could save on credit card interest.