Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Post Bankruptcy Credit Repair

Although bankruptcy is not something any person wants to go through, it is a part of life for many. Sometimes, debt just becomes too overwhelming and no matter how hard you try, bankruptcy becomes inevitable. You might find yourself in a bad divorce situation, perhaps you just lost a spouse, or you might have just made some poor decisions from a financial perspective. No matter what, you still have rights. This article will address post-bankruptcy credit repair, showing you how to “start over”.

For most people having gone through bankruptcy, they feel beat down and unworthy. You can stand up for yourself and use the laws in place to help you get back on your feet. You are certainly not the only or the last person ever found in this situation so pull yourself up by your bootstraps and take chart. Post-bankruptcy credit repair is an excellent opportunity to clean up old credit history and start anew so you can enjoy the things in life you deserve.

What happens is that once you file for bankruptcy and it is discharged, the debts are reported on the credit report as “zero balance”. Keep in mind that a bankruptcy can remain on your credit report for up to 10 years but that does not mean you cannot enjoy buying power. One of the ways to enjoy post-bankruptcy credit repair is to re-establish yourself with a secured credit card. You might be thinking that was what got you into trouble in the first place, why would you want a card. Well, a secured card is different.

With this, you can choose a Visa or MasterCard, which is issued by a bank. You would be required to have a savings account at that particular bank, which would be used for collateral toward purchases. Therefore, let us say you were given a $300 credit line. You would open a savings account with a minimum of $300. You can spend on that card up to $300 just as you would with a traditional credit card but if at any time you were to be late on a payment or default, the bank would take the money required from the savings account, which you would not have access to. Therefore, you enjoy post-bankruptcy credit repair while the bank is secured.

Another post-bankruptcy credit repair option would be to buy a car from someone that advertises they specialize in loans specifically for people who have experienced bad credit, even bankruptcy. The good side of this is that you get the car and have a great opportunity to show creditors that even with a bankruptcy on your credit report, you are still trying and creditworthy. The downside is that you can expect to pay high interest rates so there is trade off.

Just remember that with any type of post-bankruptcy credit repair, you want to be careful to avoid the very, same traps that ensnared you before landing you in hot water. Too often, people having filed for bankruptcy will find their mailbox inundated with all types of unsecured credit card offers. The reason – you do not owe anyone money. Therefore, even though you filed for bankruptcy, all income is just that, income and not payments. This means companies are willing to take a small risk. Unfortunately, unsecured credit cards mean you can spend, be late, and miss payments altogether, and all that would happen is you would have another negative remark on your credit report while the company would have to pay an attorney to hunt you down. This is danger, as you can imagine.

In truth, you have too many good, post-bankruptcy credit repair options to be setting yourself up for failure. Just be smart and make wise choices. You can always work with a reputable credit counselor to learn all the options you have. Bankruptcy is not pretty but it is also not the end of the world. You will have to work to get back on track and improve your credit score but in time and by doing it the right way, you can and you will!


http://www.creditrepaircommando.com/post-bankruptcy-credit-repair.html