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Balance transfer vs personal loan, I picked wrong and paid for it
So last fall I had about $6,800 on two cards, one at 24% and one at 19%. I kept seeing ads for 0% balance transfer cards and thought that was the obvious move. Applied, got approved for a limit that covered it, moved everything over. Then I realized the transfer fee was 4% and the 0% only lasted 15 months. I figured fine, I can pay it off in a year. But then my car needed new tires in November, holiday stuff came up, and by month 9 I still owed $3,200. The promo ends in March and I'm staring at 26% interest. My buddy did a personal loan instead at 11% fixed and he's just chipping away with no stress. I guess I didn't math out the fee plus the risk of not finishing in time. Anyone else take a balance transfer and regret it when the clock ran out?
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bell.harper1mo ago
wait, hold on. 26%? that's brutal. i knew those promo cards were sneaky but i never actually did the math on what happens after the clock runs out, i just assumed people paid it off in time or something. the fee alone is like the first punch, but then getting hit with that rate on top of the remaining balance is just ruthless. honestly i think the personal loan route is way more realistic for most people because it forces you to face the real number instead of playing this game where you're racing a deadline. i bet half the people who do balance transfers end up in your exact spot, they just don't post about it.
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