Are balance transfers good or bad for credit?

[Stojakapimp]

So I'm racking up a good amount on one of my credit cards, and know it will take me a little while to pay it off, so I've pondered about opening up another account and doing a balance transfer. But does anyone know if this would hurt or improve my credit score? I only have 2 credit cards at the moment, only one of which I use.

Also, if I did decide to do this, does anyone know of any credit card deals out there that offer 0% for 12 months on balance transfers with no transfer fee? From the quick research I've done, there are plenty out there that offer 0%, but they charge a 3% transfer fee or some fixed maximum. Are there just no great deals out there right now because of the current financial crisis?

And in a completely unrelated question, does anyone know what the penalty is if say an employer provides an employee with somebody else's W-2 forms? That's pretty personal information, and it seems like that'd be breaking some law, but I was just curious.

Thanks.

 

[Slick5150]

Opening a new card increases your total credit available, so your ratio of credit used to your total credit would go down, which generally helps your credit score.

As for finding the right card, I'd suggest reading through the Finance forum on Fatwallet. Lots of good info there.

 

[spacejamz]

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