Where and how to find the best credit card rates

Millions of American families use their credit cards, not just for shopping for luxuries today, but to make ends meet, buy groceries and pay medical bills. Credit cards have become a false lifeline for many families who may be in financial trouble. With the situation as it is how do you control or reduce credit card debt? Is it even possible to? Yes, it may take time, and it will definitely take determination – not just to get through the process, but to stick to it – but it can definitely be done, and the process can be begun by finding the best credit card rates.
One of the most important steps you can take towards debt reduction is to find the best credit card rates possible. Start shopping around for a lower-rate credit card and transfer your balance. Balance transfer is excellent idea if you plan to try paying off the credit card balance, because it allows you to pay just debt without interest, for a period of 3 to 12 months. Some cards offer interest free on just the balance transferred, some on purchases in a certain time period, and some both, so find the best. Also look at the interest they charge after the interest-free period. These rates can vary enormously. If you want to change cards before then, this is less important to you. If you plan to stay with the new card, make sure it charges a low level of interest for purchases as well as standard rates long term.
Be alert when transferring balance. The card that you are switching to pays the due amount to the old issuer. If this payment is made via check, there's a gap between when the check given and when it actually clears. This may be a time that both your old and new issuers charge you interest on. Examine the check transfer policies for both companies to ensure that you are not paying the bill for their processes.
Another thing you can do is to ask for better rates at your own credit card company. Statistics say that more than half the people, who ask, do get lower rates. If your current issuer refuses, or won't lower rates far enough to be of real help, look for a better deal. If you have been regular with payments for a while, you might have enough credit history to get a much better lower-rate card somewhere else. Be careful, a lot of the offers you may see are introductory. You are promised a 5% rate, don’t read the fine print, and find that it shoots up to 18% after a certain time. You should look for a card charging a fixed rate. Your apparently low-rate card may not be as low as you think it is if it charges an annual fee. The best credit card rates are the ones that have no annual fee added in. always shop for a no-fee card which gives you a lower rate than your break-even point.

Most credit card companies now penalize customers for not using the cards regularly basis. They hike interest rates on cards not used for sometime, and neglect to inform customers so that when they charge expenses to those cards they are presented with a huge bill. Stick to one or two cards that give you the best credit card rates, and keep checking on the interest rates. Make sure, before you apply for a new card, that there are no hidden fees or increased minimums to be paid. Card issuers generally charge foreign exchange transaction fees for purchases made overseas. Even if you have paid in US dollars and not exchanged any currency, you will have to pay 3 percent of the US dollar value of the transaction so, before getting a new card, find out what charges will be levied on shopping abroad.

Many debt consolidation agencies and consultants exist, online and off, who will provide resources for identifying lower rate cards. Sites like Bankrate.com, lowerratecards.com, and consumersleague.org/credit.htm allow you to compare between all the cards to select the one that gives you the best credit card rate. Others, like lifehacker.com/software/credit-cards and oundmoneytips.com/article, offer tips on how to negotiate for a new, lower rate, with your existing issuer and limiting some fees and interest as you reduce your debt.