from what I've seen Citi cards, and Discover charge a 3% balance transfer fee, but the Chase Slate does not for 15 months 0% interest rate and a 0% balance transfer fee makes this pretty lucrative saving you $120 on transfer fees on $4,000.
Although it can be said that if you were to get a card like Discover or Citi Foward they have very nice benefits in cash back, or gift card redemption that can reward you in the long run.
Even if your credit file is spotless we don't know how much age is on your accounts, besides that with being 50% in debt I would have a hard time believing your scores are 705-750 territory sorry to say, unless you were backdated on a VERY old Amex account or authorized user/ additional card member of one or more. Although if you had that your credit utility should be much lower since a long presitine credit history usually comes with very high limits to factor into your debt.
Best thing to do is if you have friends or family willing to add you onto their very high limit cards to offset your credit/debt ratio you would have better chances to get approved for a good card with better limits.
@Anonymous wrote:
Thanks for your candor. No, I couldn't believe the 705-750 range given by the calculator either.
Given I only own one credit card (and have no other loans), is age of account simply the total number of years since I got the card? I've had it 8 years. My utilization shot up just in the past year. Till then, my balances were low--well under 20% util--and paid off fully each month.
The friends/family route isn't really an option for me. So I'm thinking I should pay down my balance further from 50% to 35% util, which I can manage, and then apply. Thanks a lot for the response.
np we're here to help, 35% you should get a decent limit with 8 years history on 1 card, but if you can get into Navy Federal Credit Union I would probably apply for a card there at the sametime. (you have to have a family member or roommate with an account with them though, unless you were in the military) They give you VERY high limits best in the industry as a matter of fact =)
You should build up your credit history a bit though, even getting a FHA mortgage they recommend having 2 cards minimum. If your going to apply just find what fits you the best. the 3% balance transfer shouldn't matter if you get more than $120 in benefits from other cards. Like for instance Citi Forward is a great card with 0% apr for 12 months.
It gives 5 points per dollar for at restaurants (including fast food), bookstores (Amazon.com is classified as a bookstore 
), music stores, video rental stores and movie theaters; 1 ThankYou Point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
Which is nice cause you can get discounts on your textbooks while your in school, and also restaurants, seems like bars count too atleast in my experience lol. Although 1 point is worth 0.8 cent it's still 4 cents on the dollar, but if you have another citi card like the preferred (no annual fee) your points will be worth 1 cent a piece, or upto 1.33 cent for travel with certain cards (but $120 annual fee)
Remember to get the best limits and offers on all cards, pick 2 to 5 cards max to apply for in 1 day, and do it all on the same day, this way the credit card companies will not see the recent inquiries of eachother =) your credit score will drop after they all report quite a bit, but will rise back to where it was in about 6 months period.
First card you should apply for imo is US Bank Cash+ you can get upto 6.25% back on two categories of your choice, usually people opt for billpay (insurance, cellphones, utilities etc) which is amazing since no one else does, then restaurants is another popular one.k
1. US Bank Cash+
2. Amex BCP 6% groceries 3% gas 3% department stores
($75 annual fee but is taken care of if you spend $25 a week on groceries, also with Amex sync they give you MANY ways to recoup the cost. I got $125 statement credit from Small Business Saturday alone on my 1 card, with additional cards I made for my family with 1 card I went to a local restaurant and got a $125 gift certificate for the restaurant for free 
I also got $35 to beat Halo 4, and $25 for spending $50 at best buy, and $25 for buying a $100 CostCo gift certificate online.
3. Chase Freedom great rotating categories like 5% gas 6months of the year. (combined with BCP it averages 4% gas rebate annually, and 4.625% if you get a Sapphire and use it for travel) This pretty much defeats the need for a dedicated gas card imo. I would only save under $10 a year in gas and not having to have a dedicated gas card =)
@Anonymous wrote:Update: I don't know if anyone who gave me advice earlier is still out there, but thanks very much. I decided on 3 cards (Discover, Citi Simplicity, and Chase Freedom) and applied online. I received instant approval and an $8400 CL from Citi. The card has zero perks, but I got exactly what I wanted--the 18 months of 0% interest on a balance transfer.
Discover did not approve me online, but I received a call from them. After phoning them back and answering some questions, I was approved for a $5500 CL. They asked me why I applied for a card, my employment status, and why I classified myself as "other student" on my application.
I called Chase. They said my application is pending, not denied and that I should hear back in a day or two. I'm hoping I get this one too, since their $100 sign-up bonus would just about cover the transfaction fee I'll be paying for the BT.
I've learned a lot just lurking in these forums, so thanks to everyone for all their helpful input.
Wow, Congrats!!! Thats awesome. Did they tell you your credit scores?
Starting Score: EQ=665,TU=618 on Oct 9,2010