Do you carry a balance on your credit card? Do you receive continued solicitations for new credit cards in the mail? This is where credit card surfing can come into play. Using a credit card is an easy and simple way to buy things, but things start getting expensive, if you continue to carry a balance on your credit card.
Credit cards normally charge a much higher interest rate than the going market rate, basically to charge for the convenience of their services. A credit card is in effect an unsecured loan. You borrow money from the credit card company to buy something, but the credit card company does not take any of your assets as security. So, if you default on your credit card balance, the only recourse they have is to take you to court to try to recoup their monies.
You keep getting credit card solicitations in the mail, most of them offering 0% interest or 0% interest on balance transfers. Of course these offers are for a limited amount of time, ranging anywhere from one month to a year. So, if you are carrying a balance on your credit card, you can continue signing up for a new card that promises 0% interest for a limited amount of time. When that promotional offer ends, then you ‘surf’ your balance on to another credit card.
It sounds tedious and you have to be on the ball to remember when your introductory 0% interest rate offer ends, but in the end, depending on the balance you are carrying on your card, you could save yourself a bundle.
Obviously, credit card surfing is not a long-term solution to manage your debt. In the short-term you can credit card surf and save some money, but in the end you to find a solution to repay your debt. Once you have run out of introductory offers, then at least keep your balance on the lowest interest-bearing credit card you can find.