Once you have determined you need to do something about the amount of debt you have, chances are you want the fastest method of getting out of debt possible. Whether you have multiple credit cards that you pay each month or just one or two credit cards with large balances – you can benefit by saving both money and time by using balance transfer credit cards to get out of debt. Most 0% balance transfer offers last for at least 12 month and some last as long as 24 months. With one of these offers, you can stop interest from relentlessly piling up while under the umbrella of a 0% rate.

Balance Transfer Offers Help You Get Out of Debt Faster

On a credit card with a $2,000 balance charging you 15% interest, your minimum payment is likely to be 2% of the balance – or around $40 per month. Of that $40 payment, $24 goes toward interest. That means that more than 50% of your payment is going towards interest while less than half is working to reduce your debt. Even if you pay twice the minimum, or $80 a month, over 25% of every dollar you send in is going towards interest.

If you transfer this balance to a credit card with a 0% balance transfer offer and continue to make a $40 payment each month – all $40 will be deducted from your balance. And if you can afford $100 a month, you can reduce your two thousand dollars of debt by more than half in just one year.

How Balance Transfers Work

Credit card companies rely on 0% balance transfer offers to bring in new customers. They charge a fee of 3 to 5% on each balance you transfer, but then give you 12 months or more with no interest. Even after you account for transfer fees, most people with interest rates in the low teens or higher can save money when paying off credit card balances without interest expenses.

During the 0% period, all of the money you send will go toward reducing your debt, helping you pay the balance off quicker.

The credit card companies with balance transfer offers are hoping you have a lot of debt left when the 0% promotion ends, so that they can begin charging you interest on the remaining balance. If you've made repaying that debt a priority, hopefully the debt has been paid off. If you still have a large balance left once the promotion ends, there are probably other credit card companies who will offer you a new 0% balance transfer offer so you can continue paying off the debt interest free.

For People With Too Many Credit Cards

If you're struggling to get out of debt because you have a few hundred or a few thousand dollars spread out across several credit cards – a balance transfer offer will help you get organized and pay off your debt. When you are sending a small payment to multiple credit cards, most of your money is paying interest. This is why you can send money month after month and barely see any difference in the amount of credit card debt you have!

If you can get approved for a 0% balance transfer offer, you can then transfer balances from your highest interest cards that cost you the most money. If you don’t get a high enough credit limit to cover all of your credit card debt, pay close to the minimum on your 0% card and as much as possible on the cards that still have rates. Then, once you’ve paid them off, try to repay the debt you transferred before the 0% rate expires. In the meantime, you can continue sending just the minimum payment to your other credit card accounts if you don't have additional money in the budget to send more. Once you've paid off your balance transfer; you can look for a new balance transfer offer for your remaining high interest credit cards and repeat the process.

Balance Transfer Offers Help You Get Out of Debt Faster

On a credit card with a $2,000 balance charging you 15% interest, your minimum payment is likely to be 2% of the balance – or around $40 per month. Of that $40 payment, $24 goes toward interest. If you transfer this balance to a credit card with a 0% balance transfer offer and continue to make a $40 payment each month – all $40 will be deducted from your balance which helps you get out of debt faster.

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Jeff Weber writes about saving money and reducing credit card debt with balance transfers at SmartBalanceTransfers.com, a website designed to educate consumers about 0% APR balance transfercredit cards.