It’s really doesn’t have to be this complicated. They are taking a simple arbitrage and making it seem complicated.

A simpler system to pay off debt sooner:

1. Budget an additional amount (e.g. 5 -10% more) each month towards your debts.
2. Look at all your debts and apply this excess payment to the highest rate debts first.
3. (optional) Keep your checking account near zero, with the balance in money market, ING, or HSBC accounts earning 4-5-5% (as opposed to checking’s 2-3%).

Check out the book “Downsize Your Debt,” by Andrew Feinberg. I read this over a decade ago. The ideas seem obvious to me now, but it certainly helped me back then.