Do credit card balance transfers hurt my credit rating?

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Post subject: credit card balance transfers, affect rating?

Neil Plant
Date: 11/24/2000 4:38 pm CDT

I've been told that playing the balance transfer "game" negatively affects one's credit rating. However, in all the advice in the Credit Freedom website this was not mentioned. Is this a myth? I have received excellent offers for "5.9% until transferred balances are paid off", have reviewed all the fine print, and would love to take advantage but not until I know the answer to this question.

Anxiously waiting,
Neil Plant

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GEORGE
Date: 11/24/2000 4:54 pm CDT

NO..."BALANCE TRANSFER GAME" CAN'T NEGATIVELY AFFECT ONE'S CREDIT RATING UNLESS WHAT YOU "PAID OFF" AT THE LOWER RATE JUST COMES BACK...(YOU SPEND IT AGAIN, AND GET DEEPER IN DEBT).

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Board Monitor - CS
Date: 11/25/2000 0:30 am CDT

FICO, while still shrouded in mystery, can be effected by one opening accounts then dumping them six months later for a new account. A percentage of your score is based upon the amount of time you've had your account open.. so yes, it can hurt your credit, but not much.

What you should really be concerned about is a different report, called a Kiting Report (as far as I know, only a handful of the top issuers use this report). This report indicates whether or not you've taken advantage of low intro rates to simply transfer the balance when the rate expires. If you've played the Balance Transfer game a few times, this shouldn't effect you much, but if it's something you've been doing for years, you may not receive a low intro rate at all. Issuers have become wise to this practice in recent years, and it is not profitable for them to offer low rates to customers who consistently "surf rates."

Take Care,
Casey Smith
cardrevolt.com

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kate
Date: 11/26/2000 8:44 am CDT

How about being rejected by new low-rate offers because of your debt/income ration? What can it do, if anything?

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BLE103
Date: 11/26/2000 7:46 pm CDT

Can you give me more information on this kiting report that you have talked about?When did these credit card companies started using these kind of reports.

thank you

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BLE103
Date: 11/26/2000 7:43 pm CDT

Opening accounts just to get the low rate.Use their low rate,and then when this low rate is to about to expire then you hop on the next card.You close the previous account,and so forth.This kind of activity is very harmful to your credit rating.So the best thing for anyone to do is not to be opening,and closing credit card accounts to close to each other.If you have recently opened up an account or 2 it is recommended for you to keep them open for a year or 2.

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