Another way to slash your debt is to transfer a high credit card balance to a personal loan. Advantages include the relatively short payoff schedule and the fact that there is no collateral for lenders to repossess. The downside is that personal loans carry higher interest rates than secured loans and that you may not qualify if your current debt load is high. The more you owe, the more you save. If you have a good credit history and qualify, they may charge less than an unsecured loan.
Many creditors make it easy to transfer balances with convenience checks.
Disadvantages are that many low rate offers only last a few months and some card issuers charge fees to transfer a balance. Constant switching among credit cards also takes time and planning. Call them and negotiate for a lower rate. Check how long advertised rates last and whether they apply to balance transfers. Borrowers pay less than they would to a financial institution and lenders receive a higher rate of return than they would on cash assets.