[thechat] Credit Card Mortgage

[Luther, Ron]

Fred noted:

>>I am actually financing it on credit cards. The truth is that I got a 
>>better deal altogether--I am getting fixed APRs as low as 2 and even
0%.
>>Discover has a 0% lifetime APR on balance transfers if you make 2
purchases a month. 


Hi Fred,


Sorry dude, sounds like a bad idea to me.

You _do_ realize (a) that the low APR only applies to the balance
transfer 
amount and not to your new purchases, and (b) that your payments on the 
card apply first to the balance transfer amount and, only after that
balance 
is paid off in full, to those new purchases you are making on this card,

right?  That means you're paying the big APR on those two new 'little' 
purchases every month and those purchases and their interest is
compounding 
month after month until you pay off that initial balance transfer and
then 
begin to pay off those new purchases.

It's all in the small print.  They are not losing any money here.


Regards,
RonL.


There are some ways to 'game' the system, but it takes discipline and
the payoffs 
are modest.  It's not 'crazy money':
http://finance.comcast.net/personalfinance/view.html?x=debt/advice/conve
niencechecks2005