Low fixed interest credit cards - Don't pay more in interest that you have to

Switching your credit card can be a daunting task, sure if you saw an ad on TV and you've already decided what card you're going to apply for then it might seem simple. How ever, are you really making the right decision for your personal finances. The companies with the biggest marketing budgets don't always have the best product. This article is going to explore low fixed interest credit cards, more specifically we'll talk about who should get one, how much you can save, and what type of card you should be looking for. By the end of this article you should be able to pick out your own low fix rate card, and feel confident that you made the right decision.

Those of you that carry balances listen up

If you're carrying a balance month in month out on your current credit card then credit cards with low fixed interest rates are for you. You're being charged interest each and every month, and it's compounding (interest from month 1 gets charged interest on it in month 2 and so on and so on). You need to break the cycle, and the only free lunch you're going to get is by switching to a low fixed interest rate card.

By reducing the interest rate you're not only going to be saving your monthly interest charges, you're also going to be decreasing the time it takes you to pay off that balance.

How much money can you save?

Let's assume you're paying 18% or more on your current credit card. If you can reduce that rate by half, then you're effectively cutting your monthly interest costs in half. Think about it, if you were paying $150 a month on your credit card, and $80 of that was going to cover interest costs, you cut your interest charges by half, you're not paying another $40 on that outstanding balance you weren't before, or almost $500 more per year. I illustrate this point about low fixed interest credit cards to help motivate you to make the switch. You can save big money, and get out of debt quicker by making the change.

What to look for in a Low fixed interest credit card

If you are currently paying 19% or more then you could conceivably find a low fix rate credit card with half your current interest rate. Something below or at 10% would be ideal. Watch out for introductory interest rates that can sometimes appear to be a fixed long term low rate (i.e. 0 percent credit card), how ever they expire after a set amount of time. If you can get a card that offers under 10% (i.e. 0%-4.9%) as an introductory rate, and still keeps a low fixed rate that's the best of both worlds.

The best advice I can give anyone considering switching from their current card to a low fixed interest credit card is to take action. The longer you wait, the more interest charges you'll pay. While it might not seem like it's worth it today, it should always be worth saving money, as long as the effort it takes to do so doesn't out weigh the benefit. When we're talking about the work to save money being a credit card application, I think you can handle it.