How To Pay Less Than Prime On Your Credit Cards

A week ago, MBNA sent my wife a "pre-approved" credit card with an introductory 3.9% interest rate for balance transfers. Cool. With the banks' best rates hovering around 6.5%, even six months at this low interest rate is a deal. She filled out the application, it got lost in the shuffle. Then another offer showed up from MBNA. I said, "If it's any more thatn 1.9% tell them to screw themselves!" She opened it and... 1.9% for six months!
MBNA makes the requirement that the balance transfer cannot transfer your balance from an other MBNA card. Most of the credit cards require this of balance transfer. That's not a big deal: between Dejardins, Scotiabank, Capital One, HSBC and MBNA, there is no reason for two cards to collide.
So how do you get below prime?

• Start with a debt. The best idea is to not be in debt in the first place. Getting out of debt on the cheap is the next best thing. Do a good job maintaining your debt. This means that these low interest offers will flood in.
  
• Sign up for a low interest card and move your balance over to this interest holiday (usually 6 months).
• Cancel the card that had the high debt.
  
• Pay down the debt as quickly as possible-- ideally pay 12+% of the balance per month.
• Four months into it, apply for the same deal from a different credit card company.
• When your second card arrives, transfer your balance over to this new card. Your interest holiday will kick in on the new card for five or six months allowing you to clear up your balance at less than prime.
• Cancel your previous low interest card.
  

Do NOT use this as a way to juggle and lower your debts. That's what the banks are hoping you will do.