What is the longest you've ever carried a 0% balance using transfers?

[StihlBilly]

I have seven months left on a 0% balance transfer on my PNC Core Visa card.  I had transferred some balances we used to make home improvements.  The 0% term was 18 months which ends this April.  I figure by then I might have about $3-4K left.  Right now I'm seeing offers on CreditKarma for other 0% for 18 month cards with very good approval odds (scores are high 600s/low 700s)-what are the chances that I'll be able to land another one this spring?  Do the card companies examine credit bureau data and eventually look to cut a user off from 0% financing eventually in an effort make money for the industry, or is it purely score driven?  

[dogmeat]

Credit Karma approval odds are not a realiable indicator of a successful app.

Credit card companies compete for customers with each other.  They are not colluding with each other to make money "for the industry."

Very few, if any, credit card companies rely solely on credit score, in their decision to offer credit.

The chances you'll be able to land another 0% offer on a new card in the Spring is likely to be dependent on your credit profile, including current utilization, past derogatories if any, income, DTI, etc.

Credit Bureau data does not indicate that you are paying 0% APR on a existing balance, therefore the specific fact that you have been using a 0% offer for a long time will not be a factor in the decision to approve a new application for credit.

[sosowy]

It depends!

I've had at least $5000 sitting on 0% cards since 2017 (three years) that I used balance transfers to jump around. At the beginning, it was easy to get BT offers. If your credit profile is good, then lenders would want to lend to you. Applying for 0% APR cards and getting BT offers just depends on your credit profile. 

A word of caution - if you don't pay down your balance and add to the utilization, your score might decrease. If your score decreases, those offers might dry up. I did this. When I hit about 30% util, I stopped getting BT offers (and had to find a way to pay down the debt) and my score was too low to actually qualify for any good cards that had BT/intro APR offers.

I still don't get BT offers two months since util posted <10%, but I can get 0% APR cards.

[OmarGB9]

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@StihlBilly wrote:

I have seven months left on a 0% balance transfer on my PNC Core Visa card.  I had transferred some balances we used to make home improvements.  The 0% term was 18 months which ends this April.  I figure by then I might have about $3-4K left.  Right now I'm seeing offers on CreditKarma for other 0% for 18 month cards with very good approval odds (scores are high 600s/low 700s)-what are the chances that I'll be able to land another one this spring?  Do the card companies examine credit bureau data and eventually look to cut a user off from 0% financing eventually in an effort make money for the industry, or is it purely score driven?  

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@dogmeatexplained it quite well. Firstly, CK's "approval odds" are meaningless; they get PAID to market cards to consumers. Secondly, getting approved for another 0% card in the spring will largely depend on your file at that time. CC companies wouldn't know if you're on 0% or not; all they see is the balance and whether it is increasing or decreasing. And approvals/offers aren't purely score-driven; they're more profile-driven (i.e. overall picture of your application: income, score, open loans, open CC balances, limits, age of file, derogs, etc.).

[Loquat]

Back in the day I used BTs a lot and would carry most of them to end of term. No so much anymore these days...at least not on a major. I often carry a balance on my Lowe's store card if I want to make a large purchase.

As far as getting another 0% offer, you may be extended one from another lender, maybe not. I don't think it's something they actively look for in efforts to make more money as I have a lender (PenFed) that has had a 0%/3%/12month offer for as long as I've been a customer with them (many years). It's a standing offer with them even when it's not advertised.

If you find yourself running out of time and are in need of another offer try looking around for what's being offered at the time. There are a few cards out there that always has 0% as part of their new card welcome and then you have those like PenFed that has the standing offer.

This year has certainly been different but typically I would see lots of BT offers coming my way during the holiday season and shortly after as lenders often compete for the holiday spend. I don't know if it'll be the same this year as nothing this year has been anywhere close to "normal".