Trying to pay down credit cards & refuses a balance transfer. Now what?

[icebearforpresident]

I have 2 credit cards with about 8k between them, one account is closed and the other still active.

Card 1 has a balance of about £4900. The account is closed and I’m paying the balance off at £145 a month, this is about £50 more than the minimum payment.

Card 2 has a balance of just over £3000 and I’m making the minimum payment every month. Account is still open.

I’m managing the payments I have but I’m lucky if I have £50 at the end of the month by the time they and other monthly expenses are dealt with. I’m horribly conscious that there’s no wriggle room in case of an emergency. So having checked my credit score (excellent) and having done an eligibility check I applied for a m&s balance transfer card, the idea being know a chunk off the open card and pay the balance down quicker. But the application was refused.

Like I said, I’m managing the debts but it’s playing more and more on my mind. Any suggestions (beyond selling everything on eBay, nothing I have is worth anything)?

M and s are a really hard babk to get credit with. I'd try for a card with someone you already bank with.

Be careful though, as that credit refusal will show on your credit score now as a search

Go on Money Saving Expert, they do mini pre check that won't show on your file and find a card with a free balance transfer that will accept you. M&S are a tough cookie! Try Sainsbury's or Santander.

Money saving expert. See what are the best deals for you with a balance transfer. Check t and c - I got 28 months interest free and balance transfer. DH got something like 60 days interest free on one offer balance transfer.

If you go through above can get pre approval so no multiple credit checks which damage your rating. You should really have done this before applying as some damage may be done with a refusal

You need to check which bank is behind each card - you can't transfer to a card at the same 'bank'

HSBC back a lot of credit cards via different outlets

I had done the MSE check a few nights ago before accessing my credit score this evening, it recommended me the M&S card! I had no idea they were a difficult bank to get credit from or I wouldn’t have applied for it. How long will the search stay on my file? I know the failed application will knock my score so don’t want to try again too soon.

It won't knock it much, don't worry about it. It will stay many years. I checked mine the other day and it showed some late payment for something and when I looked in detail it was from about 2010!

Try MBNA. I got a card from them with a high limit a couple of months back and they have good balance transfer offers. Also Tesco and TSB.

The odd search doesn't matter, just if you have several. I had 2 loan searches within days when the first one turned out that the interest rate was too high to make the loan viable. I was accepted by my own bank, at a good rate on the second application.

MSE is an excellent resource, but I wouldn't follow their eligibility checker too closely, it hasn't been accurate for me over the years.

Thanks everyone, this has been bugging me for days. I'm not struggling for the payments but being an estate agent in the build up to brexit is a shakey peg! I just want to clear as much debt as I can as quick as I can, and the debt means i have no savings to make a lump payment.

MBNA and Sainsburys are consistently the cards that come up as top on the comparisons i've done via a few different websites, but they are who my existing cards are with. Someone above mentioned that you cant transfer a balance to the same "bank" which is why i haven't tried applying for either of them. The M&S card was second on the list from MSE which is why that was the one i applied for.

I have just paid off my car finance so the cash from that is going to go towards the cards. But an interest free balance transfer would really help. A payment of £104 towads one card this month cleared £40 of the balance, the rest went on interest

I'm I. The same busy. Would love to get an answer!