Best balance transfer cards and approval odds?

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all of the responses guys! I actually just checked on my available balance transfer promotions with Discover earlier today and talked to a customer service rep about them too. I have a $12,000 limit and according to the rep there is no hard pull involved and there should be no problem transferring the $10,000 over.
There are currently 2 options available to me.
1. 12 months, 0% with a 3% transfer fee.
2. 18 months, 5.99% with no transfer fee.

I know that with my current budget there's no way that I can handle paying off in 12 months, but I am positive that I can easily do it well before 18. Yes I would be paying a little bit of interest, but I still feel like it's a really solid option considering that the likelihood of me getting approval to move that much with anyone else is super slim. I get a profit sharing bonus in February that I plan to wipe the Chase card out with, which would then free up $350/month to throw at the $10k balance. Not to mention I won't have to deal with adding another hard inquiry and account into the mix. The only issue being that these promos are 'respond by Oct 29' and I'm not sure if we will have closed on the mortgage refi by then or not. My dad's comment was that they run promos all the time though, so even if I'm not able to jump on this deal there may be another around the corner. Do any of you have experience with this?
Thoughts?

[Remedios]

In discover's app or website, you can plug in your numbers and it will show you the difference you'll pay between the two numbers

As far as them running these offers all the time, that's what I used to think till they poofed about 4 months ago.
No clue why, other than the fact I have no balances to transfer, but I did not have them before and the offers were there
It will tell you right below the offer how long it's good for, so you have at least till that day to see which way you want to go.

[Anonymous]

Looks like I'd save anywhere between $1650-1900 in interest depending on how quickly I paid it off. I will likely end up going with the 18 month offer if we close the refi in time. I really don't think that I'll get a better deal going with anyone else. I don't want to miss this, but I don't want to mess anything up with the refi either. Not sure how quickly the transfer/balance changes would hit my credit report after I hit the button. I would imagine that it would take at least a week, but I can't remember how it all played out when I did the Chase transfer. Anyone know about this?

[Remedios]

BT will show up on your CR at the time cards report, there is no off cycle reporting involved just because you did a BT
It's possible to have a time period where both cards show the same amount, depending on timing.
Easiest way to do it is to request Disco BT funds to your account, then as soon as BT is approved and funds are in your account, pay off the other account.

[Anonymous]

I'm kind of confused on how that would work? I know that's how it works when you get a personal loan but I thought that that always send the payoff to whatever account you're transferring directly?

[Stralem]

Discover often sends balance transfer checks that you can make out to yourself for deposit into your checking account. I've used them multiple times. If you're eligible for a balance transfer with them, they'll send some your way eventually, but it couldn't hurt to request some from an agent.

[Remedios]

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@Anonymous wrote:
I'm kind of confused on how that would work? I know that's how it works when you get a personal loan but I thought that that always send the payoff to whatever account you're transferring directly?

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You request a BT for a certain amount. You can have them pay it for you or you can elect funds be deposited to your account. Once that happens, your Discover balance will reflect BT amount and you're free to distribute funds. 

It's faster than lender making BT payment on your behalf. 

Some lenders do not allow funds be deposited to checking accounts but fortunately Discover is not one of them.

[Anonymous]

Remedios,

For this scenario to occur, do I have to talk to a rep on the phone? Or is this something that I can do purely through their website?

[Anonymous]

You can do this online under tranfers, just select which linked account you want the funds deposited in.

With Discover, there always seems to be a couple promos going. And in my experience the deadline dates often overlap with the next/previous offer.

While I would have gone for the 0% APR w/3% Fee to save even more on interest, you have to do what fits your budget. And 5.99% is a lot better than 17.24%