Make the most of Credit Card debt (part 1)

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Hang onto your money tight I don’t recommend getting into credit card debt (…the borrower becomes the lender’s slave -pro.22.7) but, if you are already in that situation – why not make the most of it?

By getting a lower rate on your credit, you can easily save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in finance charges.

For instance, when I got married, my wife had a few credit cards that she had made late payments. On one particular card her interest rate was about 26%. I noticed on one of her statements that the minimum payment was one dollar more than the finance charge. So, each month she made the minimum payment she was only lowering her balance by one dollar. I was amazed. I was even more amazed when I discovered how easy it is to get a much lower rate on your credit cards…

Just Ask. Try calling your credit card company and asking for a lower rate. In my experience, the customer service rep. who initially answers the phone will not be very helpful. If/when they say they can NOT lower your rate ask to speak to their supervisor – you will almost always get farther with the supervisors than the front line service reps. I have found the supervisors to really go the extra mile to satisfy me (the customer).

But, if you still are not getting the desired result, let them know that you mean business by kindly informing them that you would like to close your account. Most card companies will send you to a “specialist who can handle that for you.” This “specialist” is 9 times out of 10, a great salesperson who is the company’s last line of defense to keep you as a customer. They will verbally “wine and dine” you and try to persuade you not to close your account. It is at this point that you should again make your request for lower rate – and please let me know if you ever have a situation that this doesn’t work, because I have not heard of any as of yet.