Credit card debt consolidation is a term we are all familiar with. There are hundreds of sites that offer advice on the subject. But one not so familiar is DIY or do it yourself debt consolidation.

Debt consolidation refers to the consolidation of debt on various credit cards into a single credit card (or a couple of credit cards). Typically, you move your balance from a higher APR to a lower APR (annual percentage rate) credit card. It could also apply to taking out a personal loan, paying off the card and thus moving the balance from the card to the loan

The purpose of doing this is to take advantage of low introductory APR and save money in interest. The other purpose is just to consolidate the debt into one place with one payment. In some ways this works because credit card debt grows in 2 ways. One is due to the addition of new debt on the account because of new purchases and the other is due to the interest charges to the existing balance.

So a lower APR rate means that your credit card debt will grow at a slower pace and hence switching over to a card with lower APR makes sense.

The process of debt consolidation is also referred to as balance transfer for obvious reasons.

The biggest benefit offered by these credit card suppliers is 0% interest on balance transfers. Usually the 0% is generally applicable for about 3-6 months sometimes up to a year, after which the standard APR is applicable. Other credit card debt consolidation offers include things like interest free purchase for a short period, reward points, etc.

Do it yourself debt consolidation seems to be a good way of tackling the problem of credit card debt and that is the reason why there is so much of discussion on the topic of DIY debt consolidation.

For the short term this works out pretty well as if differs the pay off, but it will not get you out of debt.

For a real debt free solution refer to do it yourself debt settlement.