When you’re carrying a balance on your credit card and struggling to chip away at the amount each month, it can be pretty disheartening to see how much of each month’s payment is eaten up by interest. It may seem like you keep making payments while your balance barely budges. With interest fees tacked on each month, it can be hard to make a dent in your debt.
How does this work? Let’s say you have a card with a balance of $6,000, and it’s got an APR of 14.9 percent. The minimum payment will be about two percent of the balance – or about $120 a month. Of that $120, only about $45 will go toward the principal on your debt. The other $75 will go toward interest.
As you make payments on the card each month (and assuming you make no new charges) the minimum due and the interest accrued will shift slightly, but if you keep paying $120 a month, a year later you’ll have paid over $850 in interest. It’ll take about six and a half years to pay off the entire balance, and you’d have paid a grand total ofover $3400 in interest.
Discouraging, right?
The Fastest Way to Pay Down Debt
When you want to pay off a big balance, the best thing to do is transfer it to a card that offers a zero percent introductory APR balance transfer offer. The sticky bit is, most of those offers come with a balance transfer fee of 3 percent – that’d be $180 on that imaginary $6,000 balance. Transferring the balance will still save you a bundle in the long run, but that $180 stings.
Wouldn’t it be great if there was a card that offers a zero percent introductory APR with no balance transfer fee? Yes – and there is one which charges no fee for balance transfers within the first 60 days of opening an account.
The Slate card from Chase is one of the best cards out there for anyone trying to pay off persistent debt and looking for a great balance transfer offer. With Chase Slate, you’ll pay no interest on balance transfers AND purchases for a whole 15 months2. Any balance that you transfer within 60 days of opening the account will be fee-free as well, so you can be sure that every penny you pay toward your balance is going toward your debt for the first 15 months2 you have the account.
Want specifics? Check it out:
- $0 intro fee for balance transfers within the first 60 days of account opening.2
- 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers.2
- Monthly FICO® Score and Credit Dashboard for free.2
- $0 Annual Fee.2
- See additional Chase Slate® details.2
Which Blueprint Works for You?
Blueprint Chase’s name for the umbrella that covers all of their unique programs for helping card holders manage their accounts. These programs are totally optional and totally free. You can sign up, modify, or cancel them at any time; they are for customer convenience only. There are four plans - let’s go over them.
Full Pay
Decide which type of purchases you’ll pay off in full every month. Groceries? Department store shopping sprees? Gas? Chase categorizes all your purchases and lets you pay off whatever category or categories you choose each month, so you won’t accrue interest on those purchases. They’ll be separated out and totaled on your statement for you, and if you make your payment on time, you won’t pay interest on them.
Split
This is similar to Finish It, only you’ll use it to pay off a large purchase rather than a full balance. Again, Chase sets up a custom plan for you, so you can pay off that flat-screen TV or new laptop within a specific time frame that you choose. The Split plan progress is shown on your account for easy tracking.
Finish It
If you’re serious about knocking your balance down to zero, Chase will help you out with their Finish It plan. Tell them how much you want to pay each month, or how quickly you want to pay your balance off, and Chase does the math and sets up a customized plan for you, which will be shown separately on your statement so you can keep track of your progress.
Track It
This tool automatically sorts and categorizes all your Chase card purchases. Restaurants, grocery stores, gas stations, drugstores, etc. will all be put into easy-to-track categories. Set up a budget and decide how much you want to spend in each category every month, and then go online to check whether you’re staying within the boundaries you set for yourself. Chase puts the power to take control of your finances in your hands; modify your goals and limits anytime you want so their tools are working for you.
One of Our Favorites Will be One of Yours
The Chase Slate card really is one the best cards you can get if you’d like to keep track of your spending, customize a plan to get out of debt, and transfer a balance.
Apply today and stop paying interest on that balance that’s hanging over your head. You won’t be sorry! We’re confident that one of our favorite credit cards here at Credit-Land.com will be one of yours, too.
2 The card´s rates, fees and other terms are subject to change. Therefore, we do not guarantee that information presented on this page is current and up to date. Please, visit the bank´s or credit card company´s website to review the current Terms & Conditions.