Is it smart to take out a personal loan to pay off credit cards?
Jen asked:
I’ve been thinking about taking out a small personal loan to pay off my 3 credit cards and my 2 department store cards. do you think it’s a good idea to do so? would it just be wise to continue paying off my credit cards monthly? it’s just a thought that came in my head and was just wondering if anyone else has ever taken out a personal loan to do so.
Gina
I’ve been thinking about taking out a small personal loan to pay off my 3 credit cards and my 2 department store cards. do you think it’s a good idea to do so? would it just be wise to continue paying off my credit cards monthly? it’s just a thought that came in my head and was just wondering if anyone else has ever taken out a personal loan to do so.
Gina
Tags: Credit Cards, Personal Credit, Smart
April 10th, 2009 at 2:11 am
Christina
YES, by all means pay off the credit cards. Personal loans are much lower interest rates and better credit for you in the long run.
April 12th, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Mario
It sounds like a smart thing to do. Because with a personal loan, there’s a specific amount of time in which is the loan is paid off, meaning there is an end in sight. Having those credit cards means there is always the temptation of impulse buys and neverending debt. I say go for it, and yes, the interest rates are much lower on personal loans than any credit card company could offer you.
April 15th, 2009 at 2:53 pm
Scott
No, it’ll give you more debt to pay off. Just focus on paying off your credit cards, then cutting them to ribbons. I’ve never used credit cards, because I’d never have any use for them. Make some severe cutbacks with your money. Here’s a list of things you can do to cut back on.
- Forget the A/C and just open up your basement door to let the cool air come up and keep your house cool. Or just go without.
- Take shorter showers, use less water.
- Don’t use the lights during the day. Put up the blinds and open the curtains, let sunlight light your house.
- Don’t buy any new clothes.
- Don’t go to restaurants, don’t go to movies, don’t buy expensive coffee (i.e, Starbucks), don’t spend more money on food than you need to.
- At the grocery store, buy cheap generic food if you have to, and prepare to live off of Ramen Noodles for awhile.
- Sell some old junk laying around the house and put that towards paying off your debts.
- Cut the cable/sattelite from your TV and put an antenna on the roof.
- This should be obvious: Don’t buy any new vehicles, homes, or any large purchases.
- Cut down your electricity consumption in general
If you make these cutbacks, and others you can find around the house and in your life, you’ll have your credit card debt paid off a lot faster.
April 17th, 2009 at 8:37 am
Ernest
Some personal loans require collateral ( like a house), and some don’t. Get the loan without collateral as long as the interest rate is lower than the credit cards.
April 17th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
Edith
Great idea! As long as you arrange your budget so you don’t use your cards no more. I mean shred them credit and department store cards as soon as you get that loan. And begin using cash or your ATM. If you don’t shred them you will have another “emergency” or the person at the register will tell you about the “advantages” of using the card and you’ll end up with belly up again.
A loan will give you a specific date when you will be debt free, a fix payment, and fix rate.
April 18th, 2009 at 3:50 am
Mathew
There’s nothing wrong with a personal loan if you close all the accounts that you’re paying off.