firstinlastout wrote:
forget about your credit score right now ! Pay off your debt ! Any opportunity to get rid of debt or lower the interest rate on existing debt is a GOOD DECISION. Your credit score will always bounce back up over time.
Agreed 100%. So many times people are worried about their score. Getting out of debt is much much much more important. Paying off that $5000 debt @ 0% interest vs 14% interest will save you hundreds of dollars in interest. Those hundreds of dollars will pay down the principle first.
1) Are you planning on buying a car, open another CC, purchase home or any other major credit purchase in next 18 months?
2) Are you serious about paying down you debt? This mean cutting back on spending and making a plan to pay the debt off? Really getting serious and removing unecessary purchases?
3) Do you understand that likely your FICO score will take a hit (possible major hit) but it will improve quikcly as you pay down the debt? Do you understand that if you don't pay down the debt your FICO score likely will be worse that it is now?
If you said No to #1 and Yes to #2 & #3 then get balance transfered and pay it down. It is much easier to maintain a FICO of 700+ if you aren't weighed down by $10K+ in consumer debt.
