Minimum payment monster10 of 14My husband and I did a balance transfer to a Chase card that offered a "fixed 3.99 percent" for the life on the loan if you didn't default, miss a payment or make a late payment. We did this twice at Chase, with two accounts.I always pay online the day my statement is available (about a week before I get my printed copy). One month, I went to pay on one of my Chase accounts and the minimum payment went from 2 percent of the balance to 5 percent. My payment went from $165 per month to $440 that month.I called and was told they wanted their customers to pay down balances faster. I was rudely told it didn't matter that I had always paid more than the minimum before the due date. I tried to negotiate, but they wouldn't budge.We were lucky. My husband was unemployed at the time, so I had gone into survival mode already. No extra anything. If it wasn't a bill or food, we didn't spend. It was an eye-opener to discover we had a lot of discretionary income being spent on wasteful junk. -- Cheryl G. Related Articles:Credit card horror stories7 brainless borrowing behaviors6 smart credit card moves nowFixed rate cards going awayRelated Links:Refinance calculatorSavings goal calculatorWhat is my FICO score?Credit risk test advertisement
My husband and I did a balance transfer to a Chase card that offered a "fixed 3.99 percent" for the life on the loan if you didn't default, miss a payment or make a late payment. We did this twice at Chase, with two accounts.
I always pay online the day my statement is available (about a week before I get my printed copy). One month, I went to pay on one of my Chase accounts and the minimum payment went from 2 percent of the balance to 5 percent. My payment went from $165 per month to $440 that month.
I called and was told they wanted their customers to pay down balances faster. I was rudely told it didn't matter that I had always paid more than the minimum before the due date. I tried to negotiate, but they wouldn't budge.
We were lucky. My husband was unemployed at the time, so I had gone into survival mode already. No extra anything. If it wasn't a bill or food, we didn't spend. It was an eye-opener to discover we had a lot of discretionary income being spent on wasteful junk. -- Cheryl G.
A little research could save you BIG on interest.