BALANCE TRANSFER INTEREST RATE COMPARISONS FOR AUSTRALIAN BANKS

There are four main brands of card a customer can apply for – American Express, Mastercard, Visa and Debit cards.  Each of these has their benefits and their down sides and the customer has to decide which one is best for them.  Interest rates are not the only thing to take into consideration – there are penalty charges and annual fees to consider too.

Also each bank offers several different cards – some with rewards and benefits to suit customers who travel a lot or who use their card on purchases more than others, some with low interest rates to attract customers who will use their card from time to time.  The cost of a balance transfer can be competitive and attractive to begin with but the cost after the offer period must also be considered. Here are some pointers regarding Balance transfer interest rates:-
The ANZ Balance Visa and ANZ Low rate Mastercard both have 0% interest on balance transfers for the first six months and then the rate rises to a standard variable rate on any debit still outstanding which at present is 12.74% and 11.74% respectively .
Aussie bank has a limited offer of 4.99% rate for the first twelve months which then reverts to 9.99%.
Citibank Clear Platinum Visa has a rate of 0% for the first six months which then reverts to 10.99% while its Gold card rate 2.9% for twelve months, reverting to 19.99% on any debit still on the card after that period. Citibank Clear Visa is presently set at 2.9% for six months and reverts to 20.74% thereafter.
NAB low rate Visa has a 6 month offer of 0% which then rises to 19.99% per annum on balance transfers.
The St. George Vertigo card has a balance transfer rate of 2.99% for up to six months and Westpac Altitude stands at 3.99% for six months.  These cards revert to 19.99% and 17.99% respectively after the offer period expires.
From this information it would appear that there are several cards offering low rates to begin with which then can revert to a charge of up to  20.74%.