Debate: did my credit card balance transfer actually save me money or just drag things out?

I had this $4,200 balance on a card with 22% APR. So I moved it to a 0% balance transfer card thinking I'd knock it out in 6 months. Figured the 3% fee was worth it, came to $126. Well here I am 11 months later and I still owe $1,100 on it. I paid $104 a month but kept telling myself I had time. Now the 0% is about to expire and I'm wondering if I just fooled myself into taking longer than if I'd just gritted my teeth on the high interest. Did any of you actually come out ahead with these transfer deals or is it mostly a mental trick?

3 comments

3 Comments

kaid592mo ago

Knock it out in 6 months is always the plan, but life gets in the way... I've done the same thing. The math works if you actually pay it off, but the trick is you end up paying less per month and that feeling of "I have time" just drags it out. You saved about $200 in interest vs. the 22% card if you'd kept that same $104 payment, but you took way longer. Next time, set up automatic payments for double what you think you can afford, or just leave the balance on the high-interest card so the pain makes you pay faster.

xena12mo ago

kaid nailed it, the lower payment tricked your brain into slacking off.

jenniferw821mo ago

Wait, hold on, are you SERIOUS about that $200 savings? I had to read that twice because I was SURE you were making a mistake. @xena1, did you see that number too? Because I've run the math a hundred times and it ALWAYS feels like the lower payment saves you MORE, not less. Seeing it written out like that makes my brain hurt. I think we all just ASSUME we're somehow gaming the system by dragging it out, but you've proved it's a TOTAL trap. Honestly, that 22% interest should be illegal, it's literally designed to keep us stuck forever.