 TITLE: 7 Reasons to Get a New Credit Card This New Year CONTENT: 5\\. Pay Down Debt Interest-Free\n-------------------------------\nBalance transfer credit cards are a powerful debt-reduction tool. They can provide interest-free introductory periods of 12 months or more, which let you pay off debt without accruing extra charges.\nYou'll likely pay a balance transfer fee, which is typically 3% or 5% of the transferred balance, and you generally must move balances to a new credit card issuer. You can't, for instance, get a balance transfer card from American Express to pay off another Amex credit card.\nIf you qualify and you commit to paying off your debt by the time the introductory period ends, you could make use of a valuable financial strategy.\nAs an example, let's say you have $6,000 on a card with a 20% annual percentage rate (APR). If you were to make a plan to pay off that balance in 18 months, your monthly payment would be roughly $389, and you'd pay about $994 in interest.\nIn some cases, you could get a balance transfer card that also offers rewards on ongoing purchases so that when your debt is paid off, you can continue to take advantage of the card.\nOnce you've paid off your balance, keep debt in check by paying your bill on time and in full every month going forward. END