When you get home and check the mail after a week on the road, the piles of mail often overwhelm you. Stacking up right alongside the bills, you’re bound to see several credit card offers: “0% interest on balance transfers,” “No interest for 6 months.” etc., etc. But before you apply, there are some things to keep in mind. You need to know about the true cost of credit and how some credit card companies tempt you to get over your head in debt.

Say your favorite electronics store is offering to let you buy a $2000 flat-screen TV for only $40/month. Sounds great, right. You can have the coolest game-day parties at just a low monthly cost. Before you sign on the dotted line, take a look at the fine print.

Say the interest on that purchase is 18%:

Your $40/month payment would include $30/month in interest (based on a year loan), with only $10 going towards the amount you borrowed.
If you pay the minimum balance each month, it would take you over 30 years to pay off that TV (By then, a very outdated TV)
And, you will have paid almost $5,000 in interest!
That $2000 TV will have cost you nearly $7000 !
Now, think about what you could have earned in interest if you had put that money into a conservative investment that earned 8 percent for 40 years:

* Your $40/month would be worth over $60,000

* You would have earned almost $46,000 in interest!

So, before you fill out that next credit card application, think about this example. It could keep you from getting caught up in the credit card game. If you must use credit cards, remember how pricey it can be paying just the minimum balance each month.

**If you want to know how long it would take you to pay off your credit cards, go to this link:Debt Planner