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Article: DEBT ADVISER Don't trade equity line for trouble with credit
- Article from:
- Columbia Daily Tribune
- Article date:
- December 18, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2006 Columbia Daily Tribune. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Q. I have a home equity line with a variable rate that is about 8
percent. The balance is down to about $33,000.
I have several credit cards with high limits that are advertising
low fixed rates until debt is paid. Should I move the debt into a
couple of those?
A: You are not the first person to ask me this question, and my
belief is that there are tens of thousands of homeowners asking the
same question - for good reason.
Until last year, we had become accustomed to interest rates
falling, not rising. A huge number of homes were sold using an equity
line or a mortgage that was pegged to an index. Credit-card companies
read the papers, too, and they have responded with fixed, low- ...