Discover Rate Reduction

[Anonymous]

You know, that "chipping away" at the APR does work. We just have to have the patience to do it. I definitely think it is worth it, because like you, I don't leave a balance on a high interest card.

Keep up the good work!

[galahad15]

Congrats on the wonderful APR reduction UncleB! 

[wasCB14]

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@Anonymous wrote:

You know, that "chipping away" at the APR does work. We just have to have the patience to do it. I definitely think it is worth it, because like you, I don't leave a balance on a high interest card.

Keep up the good work!

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But how far does "chipping away" get a person? If it really works, we should see a lot of threads about cards that were once at 19.99% eventually getting down to APRs like 5.99%. The first few reductions may be easy, but then the APR may hit a floor it can't fall beneath, and it may be much higher than an APR available on a specialized BT/low APR card..

I know I've only read a tiny share of the threads here, but when I see people write about getting APR reductions, it seems to be uncommon for an APR to fall below 10% or 8%. The reports are (in my far from comprehensive study) overwhelmingly about ~20% becoming something between 10% and 20%.

Yet promos for APRs between 0% and 4% are quite readily available and people talk about them frequently.

The point being: If and when a person needs to carry a balance, an attractive APR may be far more likely to come from a special promotion or BT/specialized low APR card than "chipping away" at a rewards card's natural APR.

*Edited for spelling but not content*

[UncleB]

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@galahad15 wrote:

Congrats on the wonderful APR reduction UncleB! 

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Thanks galahad... every little bit helps!

[UncleB]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

You know, that "chipping away" at the APR does work. We just have to have the patience to do it. I definitely think it is worth it, because like you, I don't leave a balance on a high interest card.

Keep up the good work!

---

But how far does "chipping away" get a person? If it really works, we should see a lot of threads about cards that were once at 19.99% eventually getting down to APRs like 5.99%. The first few reductions may be easy, but then the APR may hit a floor it can't fall beneath, and it may be much higher than an APR available on a specialized BT/low APR card..

I know I've only read a tiny share of the threads here, but when I see people write about getting APR reductions, it seems to be uncommon for an APR to fall below 10% or 8%. The reports are (in my far from comprehensive study) overwhelmgingly about about ~20% becoming something between 10% and 20%.

Yet promos for APRs between 0% and 4% are quite readily available and people talk about them frequently.

The point being: If and when a person needs to carry a balance, an attractive APR may be far more likely to come from a special promotion or BT/specialized low APR card than "chipping away" at a rewards card's natural APR.

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Obviously there is a limit, otherwise we would all eventually end up with 1% APRs, which of course isn't possible.

I can't speak for others, but my goal is to simply get my APRs as low as I can - that's all.  I agree that there are some great promos out there, and in a perfect world when the need arises I would have time to properly vet them and then apply and then wait for a card to arrive.  Or for a BT offer on an existing card I would have the right offer at just the right time, but sometimes that doesn't work out. 

Also, several times I've had short-term needs (one or two months) and it was cheaper to simply pay a card's normal APR for a couple of months rather than a 3% BT fee to have it moved over to a 0% offer.  It just depends on the time frame... it's these times that a lower APR is beneficial to me.

Finally, "chipping away" cost me nothing at all other than a few minutes of my time... actually, I've spent more time on this post than I did getting my APR reduction.  I can understand how some people might not see the point, and that's OK, too... but this works for me. 

[SunriseEarth]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

You know, that "chipping away" at the APR does work. We just have to have the patience to do it. I definitely think it is worth it, because like you, I don't leave a balance on a high interest card.

Keep up the good work!

---

But how far does "chipping away" get a person? If it really works, we should see a lot of threads about cards that were once at 19.99% eventually getting down to APRs like 5.99%. The first few reductions may be easy, but then the APR may hit a floor it can't fall beneath, and it may be much higher than an APR available on a specialized BT/low APR card..

I know I've only read a tiny share of the threads here, but when I see people write about getting APR reductions, it seems to be uncommon for an APR to fall below 10% or 8%. The reports are (in my far from comprehensive study) overwhelmingly about ~20% becoming something between 10% and 20%.

Yet promos for APRs between 0% and 4% are quite readily available and people talk about them frequently.

The point being: If and when a person needs to carry a balance, an attractive APR may be far more likely to come from a special promotion or BT/specialized low APR card than "chipping away" at a rewards card's natural APR.

*Edited for spelling but not content*

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YMMV.   I know with AMEX, I started around 18.99% and have lowered to 8.75% through asking enough times.   This is why I was able to toss a recent Barclay Ring pre-qual right in the trash can.

However, I definitely agree that getting a promo balance for a specific purchase is definitely a better deal.  But a lower APR could be nice if you're doing things like waiting on a BT to go through.   Ultimately, everyone needs to evaluate what is best for their situation.  

[Credit_hawk]

Congrats Uncle Buck!!