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It is true that a low-interest credit card can be very appetizing and one can transfer as many balances as one can stand. However, many of those offers are just temporary and sooner or later, instead of paying that juicy 1.9% interest rate, you will be paying 18.9% or higher.

Another thing to keep in mind when you are solicited with one of these exciting balance transfer offers, is that there is also balance transfer fee! It is usually a minimum of $10.00 or 5% of the entire transferred amount or a maximum charge of $75.00.

There are some credit card companies that will send you a package of balance transfer checks. You may receive five or six of these with different percentage rate offers, and this all of course, depends upon your credit report and whether it is in good shape or not.

If you receive a package of credit card checks, it is advisable to read the information first, instead of ripping that 1.9% check out and paying your mortgage with it.

Sometimes it is wiser to make use of a higher balance transfer rate: I received an offer the other day from a well know credit card company; I could use one of the offered checks that had a 1.9% interest rate, but it only lasted until October 2007. It also came with a transfer fee; However, this rate, after October would rise to 9.9%.

In the same envelope, were two other checks that offered a 4.9% interest rate. This offer was good for the life of the balance transferred, but it also had a transfer fee. The final two checks came with a 6.9% interest rate; There was no transfer fee and was good until the transferred balance was paid in full.

Something else to keep in mind; If you jump at one those low offer interest rates, make sure that you pay your bill on time! Before you know it you could be paying as much as 29.9% interest and not even realize it until you have time to sit down and study your credit card statement.

No matter what we do, the world is full of wonderful offer, but it is extremely advisable for us to sit down and read the print before we jump into anything.

Learn more about this author, Jon Coe.
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