Pay extra to mortgage or 'stooze'?

I owe 1500 on my visa card but the money is sitting in a mini cash ISA. I'm paying the minimum on my visa balance each month from my pay - but am switching the balance around the 0% offers. I'm due to switch it again soon - would I be better off paying it off and putting the 30 or so each month into my mortgage instead?

My mortgage is already down to 4 yrs 7 months.

sarah

Reply to
sarah
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The usual rule of thumb is to compare the interest rates and put the money where it is most effective either at reducing debt or generating income. However if there is only a tiny difference in rates between your ISA and mortgage, I'd actually opt for keeping it in the ISA so that the cash is accessible in an emergency.

Reply to
Geoff

No, it would not be a good idea to crack open the ISA and use the money to pay off the card, because you'd be losing interest at (say) 4.8% on £1500 for 4 years in order to pay off a loan which isn't costing you anything. You'd be down £288.

The cashflow of £30 would be going to pay off debt in both cases, in the original case (as things are) you'd have as good as paid off the card in 4 years, while with plan B you'd have paid the same amount off the mortgage, which would have saved you roughly half of 4 years' interest at (say) 6%. That's £180. So you're still down £108.

A better idea might be plan C: Crack open the ISA and pay the £1500 off the mortgage. This would lose you £288 over 4 years as above but would save you £360 in loan interest payments. Keep the £30 cashflow dedicated to paying off the card debt. You'd be up £72.

But is that worth:

(1) The risk that you might not be able to find 0% deals for the full 4 years it would take you to pay off the card, and then not have the money in the ISA any more, and suddenly find yourself having to pay out interest at the card rate?

(2) Losing out on interest income from the £1500 in the ISA not just for 4 years, but forever?

No, what I'd do is keep going as you are, until the 0% offers run out. Then use the ISA money (or as much of it as necessary) to pay off the card because it would then start costing you some

1-2% per month, which is much more than you're earning in the ISA.
Reply to
Ronald Raygun

Thanks very much for the replies.

I always thought the rule of thumb was to pay off debt before having savings - however as you rightly point out - the Visa debt is costing me nothing all the time I can shift it round the 0% deals.

I just wondered how much I would benefit from paying the Visa payment towards my mortgage instead of the Visa but your reply puts it in perspective.

I occasionally hear wonderful things about 'overpaying' one's mortgage and how it takes years off etc... and just wondered which was the best way to go.

many thanks

sarah

Reply to
sarah

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