Creditnet.com (http://www.creditnet.com), a leading online authority on credit card information and products, announces its list of the best balance transfer credit cards of 2013.
San Diego, Calif. (PRWEB) January 09, 2013
As consumers look to lower credit debt in the new year - a debt that ballooned to nearly $5,000 for the average borrower in 2012, according to the credit reporting agency TransUnion - many will choose to transfer that balance to a new credit card with a 0% interest introductory period.
Balance transfer credit cards, as they have been termed, are cards marketed at consumers hoping to take full advantage of a 0% interest period to pay back credit debt directly, interest-free.
But according to the prominent consumer credit website Creditnet.com, not all balance transfer credit cards are created equal. That is why Creditnet today announced its picks for the best balance transfer credit cards of 2013.
Taking into account factors that included intro period length, balance transfer fees and user reviews, Creditnet found three credit cards for balance transfers that are head and shoulders above the rest in the new year.
1.) Citi Simplicity® Card
The Citi Simplicity Card is considered one of the best balance transfer credit cards by Creditnet because of its extended intro period - 18 months for eligible consumers - and the lack of fees attached to the card.
The 0% interest period included on this balance transfer credit card applies to both balance transfers and purchases, and there's no annual fee, no over-the-limit fees and best of all, no late payment fees. There is however a balance transfer fee of 3% of the total balance being transferred, or $5 - whichever is greater.
For consumers hoping to consolidate debt in 2013, Creditnet considers the Citi Simplicity Card the very best in terms of a pure balance transfer credit card.
2.) Discover it™ - 18 Month Balance Transfer Card
Discover is getting aggressive in its promotion of the new Discover it Card, which is good news for consumers according to Creditnet.
The new Discover it - 18 Month Balance Transfer Card includes 0% interest on balance transfers and purchases, and like the Citi Simplicity Card is more lenient on late payments than most and will waive the fee attached to the first late payment a consumer makes. (It's $35 thereafter.)
Unlike the Citi Simplicity Card, the Discover it - 18 Month Balance Transfer Credit Card includes a lucrative rewards program in which consumers can earn up to 5% on rotating categories, including purchases made at restaurants and movies through March, 2013. Consumers earn another 1% cash back on all other purchases.
The fee to transfer a balance on this credit card is 3%. Creditnet recommends this card for consumers interested in making a balance transfer while earning some cash back in 2013. (Thought it should be noted that consumers do not earn cash back on balance transfers.)
3.) Slate (SM) from Chase - No Balance Transfer Fee
This balance transfer credit card from Chase remains the only card on the market today that does not charge a fee on balance transfers. Consumers can transfer debt free of charge onto this exceptional credit card from Chase, though transfers must be made within the first 60 days of an account opening to be eligible.
Unlike the balance transfer credit cards previously mentioned, the intro period in which consumers pay 0% in interest is 15 months, so consumers will have slightly less time to pay off credit debt interest-free.
There is no rewards program, however consumers won't be charged an annual fee and the ongoing APR variable is one of the lowest on the market today. According to Creditnet, this is another balance transfer credit card focused on consolidating debt for consumers in 2013.
Creditnet.com says transferring a balance to a 0% interest credit card is one of the best ways consumers can continue that new year's resolution of paying back debt in 2013, and the three cards listed above are the ones it recommends most for such a transaction in the upcoming year.
About Creditnet:
Since 1995, Creditnet.com has been an online authority for credit information, credit card comparisons and consumer credit advice. Creditnet hosts the web's oldest credit discussion blog - Credit Talk - and Creditnet is a HUB for credit news, weekly credit tips and credit card reviews.
