Should you pay off credit cards with a home equity line of credit?

By Joe Taylor Jr.

During the real estate boom of the early 2000s, paying off a credit card with help from a home equity loan seemed like a no-brainer. After all, housing prices in most parts of the country were skyrocketing. Why would you pay double-digit interest rates on a credit card when you could cut those finance charges in half or more?

In hindsight, all those refinance deals might not have been the best ideas. Where property values declined, some homeowners found themselves underwater on second mortgages and home equity lines of credit (HELOC). Now that banks have recapitalized and mortgage rates have dropped to all-time lows, home equity loans look attractive again.

Benefits of paying down high interest debt

With many credit card issuers changing their business strategies after the financial crisis of 2008, interest rates rose while credit limits dropped. Meanwhile, new federal regulations forced banks to increase monthly minimum payments on most unsecured credit card accounts. For some consumers, this double whammy wrecked monthly budgets and even caused a cascade of late payment and over-the-limit penalties.

If that scenario sounds familiar, a home equity loan could help you reboot your personal finance portfolio. Instead of surfing balance transfer credit cards and making multiple minimum payments, a mortgage refinance lets you pay just one or two lenders. Because the FICO score and other credit reporting tools review the percentage of

By Sierra Black

Everyone needs a little extra cash sometimes. Whether your car breaks down, your cousin unexpectedly announces wedding plans, or your best suit get splashed with grape juice the day before a job interview, you're bound to find yourself getting hit with a financial curve ball from time to time.

When that happens, it can be tempting to borrow the money you need. It's best to avoid any new debt if possible, even when you're dealing with an emergency.

In some cases this applies especially if you're dealing with an emergency. If your family has experienced a job loss or a major health problem, there could be long-lasting impacts on your income and living expenses. Now is not the time to destabilize your financial situation even further with a new debt to pay off.

Borrowing money means paying interest and fees on the money you need, and it saddles with you a new monthly expense. Worse, borrowing when you're already strapped for cash can trap you in a cycle of debt.

Problems with quick cash

Most of the regular sources of quick cash come with built-in problems. Let's take a quick look at a few:

• Borrowing from your retirement funds. Not only will you pay interest on a 401(k) loan, you'll lose the opportunity to earn money on that investment during the time you're repaying the loan. That will cost you big when it comes time to retire. Additionally, many 401(k) loans require you to

By Joe Taylor Jr.

Instead of flooding my mailbox with balance transfer offers, lenders have been bombarding my web browser and my DVR with ads that make me believe that picking the right credit card can help me live the good life. And while I still would love some help knocking down the interest on a few emergency purchases I made with plastic, the Chase Freedom card could convince me to cash in on my love for keeping my wallet streamlined.

The recession forced many lenders to rethink their approach to customer service, and Chase certainly took its lumps after trying to swallow what some folks call a forced acquisition of Washington Mutual's credit card portfolio. In line with the times, the Chase Freedom card forces critics to take a second look at five compelling features designed to help consumers use credit responsibly.

Getting debt-free beats no balance transfer fee

First, the down side. Chase Freedom is one of those cards that carry a three percent or five dollar, whichever is greater, processing fee for balance transfers. Unless you qualify for the lowest possible APR on the card and you're transferring a balance from a card with very high finance charges, switching to a Chase Freedom wouldn't be a good move on that count.

However, Chase Freedom is the first card in a long time that helps you strive to become debt-free. Chase used the Freedom card to pilot its "Blueprint" series of online account tools. The

By Francine Huff

If you're just starting out in the work force, you may be concerned about establishing good credit. You may already have thousands of dollars in student loans and run up other bills, so it's important that any financial products you sign up for won't add to your debt.

Many recent graduates turn to credit cards to buy furniture, a wardrobe for work, and other items they need to strike out on their own. Before signing up for a credit card, do your homework to find one that offers a zero percent interest rate.

Graduating with credit card debt

Graduating from college with thousands of dollars in debt from student loans and credit cards isn't uncommon these days. A 2009 Sallie Mae study found that 84 percent of undergraduates had at least one credit card and that half of students had four or more credit cards. Seniors graduated with average credit card debt of $4,100, up from $2,900 in 2004.

Why get zero interest credit cards?

Getting a credit card with a zero percent rate is almost the same as getting a credit card for free -- at least to start. Some cards may offer a zero percent rate for purchases and balance transfers, while some offer no interest only for transfers.

Having zero interest means you don't pay any interest even if you carry a balance from month to month, so you're borrowing money for free. However, make sure that any

By Michele Lerner

Most consumers know by now that getting into debt is a lot easier than getting out of it. According to IndexCreditCards.com, the average revolving debt (mostly credit card debt) for an individual over 18 in the U.S. was $3,532 in August 2010.

Whether you are a recent college graduate needing to establish credit or you are trying to rebuild your credit after damaging it in the past, you will need a credit card. Have you ever tried to book a hotel room, make an airline reservation or order concert tickets without a credit card? It can be impossible.

But credit cards are not just a convenience. It may seem counter-intuitive, but you need to get yourself in a little bit of debt in order to improve your credit rating.

If you think about it, it makes sense.  If you are applying for a car loan or a mortgage, the lender may only offer you a loan if they see that someone else (i.e. a credit card company) thinks you are trustworthy enough that they offered you credit. The trick is to build a strong credit rating without getting in over your head in debt.

Credit cards and debt

If you have struggled with too much debt in the past, receiving a new credit card may be scary. The key is to keep your commitment to stay debt-free and to keep your debt low by paying your balance in full each month.

One trick used by

By Sierra Black

Credit cards: the best friend and worst enemy of anyone trying to live on a budget. Your credit card is there when an unexpected bill comes up, and it can help you through a rough week when you don't quite have enough to cover groceries and pay for gas for your car. However, depending on how you use it, your credit card can also be your biggest downfall, enabling you to rack up large amounts of debt.

Managing money is hard. Especially when you're just starting out, you'll make mistakes. Having a credit card in your pocket can feel like a safety net when there's a gap between your income and your expenses.

Using credit cards to get into debt

There were plenty of weeks when I depended on my credit card to get me through to my next paycheck. Like many young Americans before and after me, I didn't always pay it off again when that paycheck came. Pretty soon, I was carrying chronic debt on all of my credit cards. A lot of it.

At that point, my helpful credit cards started to look more like enemies than friends. I was living beyond my means, and the credit cards that once helped me do it now ate up a big chunk of my income in interest payments every month. It was time for a change.

Using credit cards to get out of debt

I didn't start out