“Rolling all of your debts into a single loan is a good idea - in theory. In fact, it can be a great idea.” IdeasFactsTheoryDebtGood IdeasRollingLoanGreat Idea Author:Jean Chatzky
“A consolidation makes sense only if you can lower your overall interest rate. Many people consolidate by taking out a home equity line loan or home equity line of credit (HELOC), refinancing a mortgage, or taking out a personal loan. They then use this cheaper debt to pay off more expensive debt, most frequently credit card loans, but also auto loans, private student loans, or other debt.” PeopleIfsUseHomeInterestLinesPayStudentsRateCreditDebtCardsMake SenseExpensiveEquityLoanMortgageCheaperCredit CardInterest RateStudent LoanConsolidationHome Equity Author:Jean Chatzky
“You also need to understand that when you consolidate credit card debt into mortgage debt - like a home equity loan or a HELOC [ home equity line of credit ] - you're taking an unsecured debt and turning it into a secured debt.” NeedsHomeLinesCreditDebtCardsEquityLoanMortgageCredit CardSecuredCredit Card DebtHome Equity Author:Jean Chatzky
“In about one-third of credit card consolidations, within a short period of time, the cards come back out of the wallet, and in no time at all, they're charged back up. Then you're in an even worse position, because you have the credit card debt and the consolidation loan to worry about. You're in a hole that's twice as deep - and twice as steep.” WorryPositionPeriodsThirdsCreditDebtHolesCardsLoanCredit CardWalletsSteepConsolidationCredit Card Debt Author:Jean Chatzky
“Even in the days of the tightest credit in 2008, HELOCs [ home equity line of credit ] and home equity loans were being made.” MadeHomeLinesCreditEquityLoanHome Equity Author:Jean Chatzky
