My cards got a little bit of use for Christmas so they will take a part of the year to pay off. What do you guys think about a loan to consolidate them and have a (much) lower interest rate. Plus, paying off that loan can only help improve the credit score.
And before anyone says it, I know... you don't want to do that then run up the balances again! 
You've already identified the biggest risk. Beyond that, just look at the interest rate you can get, the amount of time you are planning to carry, figure out how much money your're going to save, and compare it to any fees associated with the loan. I don't know what APRs you have on your cards, so can't really comment as to whether it is worth it.
Starting Score: ~500 (12/01/2008)
About $4500.00. I just thought about this today so I haven't researched places yet. Possibly my credit union or online. Open to suggestions for that
A buddy was going to consolidate his credit cards and car loan with Wells Fargo a few months ago but something didn't go right. They contacted him so it sounds like the offer was going to be in their favor.
@Imua wrote:rather than take out a loan, is there any way you could apply for a 0% BT credit card (term would need to be within the time linit you would be able to pay off the balances, e.g. 12 months, 18 months, etc)?
i'm not usually a fan of applying for a cc just to do 0% BT, but it might be a better option than a loan.
To build on this, most BT offers now come with a 3% fee. However, you can avoid the fee by using the new card for all your monthly expenses, then taking the money you would have used to PIF that card and applying it to the balances of your old cards. Of course, you still need to pay the minimum on the new card. Depending on how much you spend per month for groceries, gas, utlities, etc., you can effectively transfer the balances from the higher APR cards to a 0% card fairly quickly without paying the BT fee.
@masscredit wrote:About $4500.00. I just thought about this today so I haven't researched places yet. Possibly my credit union or online. Open to suggestions for that
A buddy was going to consolidate his credit cards and car loan with Wells Fargo a few months ago but something didn't go right. They contacted him so it sounds like the offer was going to be in their favor.
The problem you're going to have is that you have high util, based on the CLs in your sig and $4500 bal., and you have a fairly recent bk. a lot of places are going to be reluctant to give you a loan that, in effect, is just going to enable you to get further into debt. As the saying goes, it's easier to get credit when you DON'T need it.
your best bet is going to be a cu, if they aren't too conservative. Call and explain your plight and see what they're willing to do. FYI, its better if you can plan for spending like that. For example, you'd do better with CLIs on your current cards and getting a 0% bt card without this high util on your cr.
good luck!
@bichonmom wrote:
@masscredit wrote:About $4500.00. I just thought about this today so I haven't researched places yet. Possibly my credit union or online. Open to suggestions for that
A buddy was going to consolidate his credit cards and car loan with Wells Fargo a few months ago but something didn't go right. They contacted him so it sounds like the offer was going to be in their favor.
The problem you're going to have is that you have high util, based on the CLs in your sig and $4500 bal., and you have a fairly recent bk. a lot of places are going to be reluctant to give you a loan that, in effect, is just going to enable you to get further into debt. As the saying goes, it's easier to get credit when you DON'T need it.
your best bet is going to be a cu, if they aren't too conservative. Call and explain your plight and see what they're willing to do. FYI, its better if you can plan for spending like that. For example, you'd do better with CLIs on your current cards and getting a 0% bt card without this high util on your cr.
good luck!
+1 You should look into a CU for a personal loan or a debt consolidation loan.
Check out Northwest Federal Credit Union. Anyone can join by paying a one-time $10 fee to join the organization FAN (Financial Awareness Network). Also, as with all CU's, a minimum opening deposit into a Share Savings account is required to establish membership -- $5 for NWFCU.
https://www.nwfcu.org/loan-rates
Loan Type Term APR* as low as
Personal up to 48 months 7.00%
60 to 84 months 10.00%
This is the lowest rate that I could find for an unsecured signature loan.