One of the most stressful aspects of having a credit card is having to deal with the interest rate. If you don’t have a great interest rate on your card then you’ll likely have to deal with paying high credit card bills that will only get higher if you don’t pay them off soon enough. What a lot of people seem to not realize is that you can actually get the interest rate lowered on your credit card by having a discussion with your card’s company about it. Of course, you can’t just call and expect them to lower it for no reason. You have to be prepared to negotiate with them and explain why you should have your interest rate lowered. Here are a few tips to help make the negotiation process a little easier.
Improve Your Credit Score
The first and most obvious thing you’ll want to do before negotiating with your credit card company is to actually improve your credit score. Most people get high interest rates because their scores aren’t good to begin with. By paying your bills on time and slowly raising your score over time, it will show your credit card company that you are reliable and that lowering the interest rate wouldn’t be a large risk to them.It’s important to make all payments on time to improve your credit score, but paying off an entire smaller debt or a decent portion of a bing debt can also give your score a boost.
Prepare Examples Of Debts You’ve Paid
Before calling your credit card company, you’ll also want to prepare a few great examples of debts you have and debts you’ve paid, as well as how you plan to continue paying off these debts. While having a great credit score will make a difference, explaining exactly how you’ve progressed with your past and current debts will make a larger impact on your reasoning for having a lower interest rate. Be sure to be totally honest with them though, as they will likely look into your claims to verify everything you’ve said.
Have Other Credit Card Offers Lined Up
Last but not least, it’s always a good idea to have a few other competitor offers lined up to throw your company’s way. At the end of the day, credit card companies want to obtain and keep customers and by explaining to them that you can go to a different company that is giving you a better offer, they may feel more inclined to give you that lower interest rate that you seek. When you begin using a credit card, many other companies will begin reaching out to try and get you to get one of their cards as well. Check your mailbox, email and just shop around online and be prepared to tell your company exactly what offers you’ve been given and where you’re thinking of going if you can’t get your interest rate lowered.