Harry Gross: Bank loan or credit-card loan?

DEAR HARRY: I have a personal loan with my bank with a balance of $13,911. The interest rate is a stiff 8.49 percent. I have a pretty good credit score, and I can get a zero-percent loan until November 2013 with only a 3 percent transfer fee. I plan to transfer any remaining balance next November to another company offering a similar deal. Is it better for my credit score to have the bank loan or the card loan? I have three other cards that I pay in full every month. That should make you happy. There is no other debt. I plan to continue to pay the same $300 a month on the loan that I'm paying now. That will leave me with about $10,000 to transfer to another card. How does this sound?

WHAT HARRY SAYS: That 3 percent transfer fee sounds a helluva lot better than the 8.49 percent the bank is getting. It will save you more than $700 for the first year, and it will speed up your getting out of this debt. It will have some effect on your credit score, and that will be favorable. Lowering your interest rate to zero shows better management than you had before. The key to a great score is to pay on time as a minimum. You'll be able to do that with ease. You're right about my being pleased with your paying those balances in full each month. You are now living beneath your means, and that's the way to accumulate wealth.