Contributed by Stephanie Litaker
Some of the standard rules of math don't apply to credit card consolidation, and that's an added bonus for you if you're trying to get your credit card debt under control. Remember the days gone by when people actually paid for their purchases with that green stuff called cash? Well that seems to be a trend of the past, but with a little help, you can take on credit card consolidation and get back to using the green stuff you don't mind touching.
There are a variety of ways to accomplish your dreams of credit card debt consolidation, but before you leap at the first offer, make sure you know what you're getting into and know what to expect when all is said and done.
When you are offered a loan for credit card debt consolidation, it seems pretty straight forward. But, is it? Yes and no. Yes, the loan itself may be pretty straight forward, but when you look at the bigger picture, it may not be as perfect as you thought it would be. In theory it's a pretty good idea - you get the money you need to pay off your credit cards, and you have accomplished your goal of credit card consolidation - but have you really? You paid off one debt, but you got another one.
So, rather than being debt free, you have just switched the type of debt you're carrying. So, in order for a credit card debt consolidation loan to really work, you have to make sure you are going to get an interest rate that is significantly lower than what you were paying on your credit cards individually. If you don't then you're not saving any money, you're just robbing one pocket for the other.