Understanding the Mathematics of Personal Finance
GRACE PERIOD
The grace period is the period of time during which you are offered 0% interest on your purchases if you pay off your total balance in full. Let me break out a few of these points carefully. For the bank cards that I’m familiar with, there is no grace period on cash advances. You start accumulating interest when you get the cash and the accounting is done as shown in Tables 6.2-6.4 . To get a grace period on your purchases, you must pay off the total new balance, not just your purchase balance, on your statement within the grace period.
How long is the grace period? Typically, almost a month. However, if you’re getting your statement in the mail (as opposed to online), then 5-10 days can go by after the closing date before you see the statement. Also, you need to allocate a few days for your check to get to the credit card company. If you get your statement online and pay your bills online, you’ll have almost an entire month of “grace.”
How do you fall in or out of grace? You must have paid your previous bill in full and on time to be qualified for a grace period on your current bill, and, of course, you must pay the current bill in full and on time.
