No matter how many clients I have worked with over the past 25 years, the greatest concern of the vast majority of them is “How long will it take me to re-establish credit after I file Chapter 7 Bankruptcy?”
While there is no hard and fast rules of thumb, it is much easier than you think. Here are four tips to consider:
1. Keep any manageable debts you can after you file. In most cases, student loans can’t be discharged by bankruptcy. Other times, clients may choose to continue making payments on a car loan. Assuming that you can afford the monthly payments, it makes sense to maintain your student loan and/or auto payments after your ...
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How Credit Card Interest Really Works
Despite the Credit Card Act of 2009 , the credit card industry is the only one that still has the right to change the terms of a contract after it has been signed. Many consumers sign up for a credit card when the interest rate is low, such as 7.9% per year. Then they miss a payment or are even just a few days late on a payment and the credit card issuer raises the rate. The new increased rate now applies for the entire unpaid balance on the card, even though the balance was charged when the old rate was in effect. It is this terrible cycle that keeps consumers in debt forever, because they end up paying interest on interest. Often, items ...
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How is Credit Reported During a Bankruptcy?
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) mandates that the credit bureaus correct errors within 30 days of notification. However, creditors are not required to make any reports on your credit while you are going through the bankruptcy process, which could be anywhere from a few months for a Chapter 7 to 5 years on a Chapter 13 case. When making payments under Chapter 13, many creditors will not report this activity for fear of violating the automatic stay that is put in place when a debtor petitions for bankruptcy. This stay prevents a creditor from taking any further action to collect debts – and some take this a step further to include ...
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What the New Credit Card Rules Mean for You
The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act was signed into law by President Obama in 2009 and has been fully in effect since August 2010. The CARD Act has changed the way credit card issuers market, bill and advertise their credit cards, which is taking away from their revenue. This change has benefited cardholders in many ways but also could eventually mean the return of annual fees, fewer rewards cards and payments due upon bill receipt with no more grace periods. Here are the important changes you should know about:
Clear Due Dates & Times
Card issuers can no longer set early morning deadlines for ...
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The Components of A Credit Score
Many lenders, such as banks and credit card companies use credit scores to evaluate the potential financial risk of giving a specific consumer a line of credit. A good credit score can mean lower interest rates or increased lines of credit. Most lenders start with your FICO score, which is a numerical figure based on previous and ongoing credit transactions. There are many components that can shape the results of your score, but there are five major factors that make a big difference:
Payment History
Creditors want to see that you have a history of paying your bills on time. Late payments will cause a score to drop considerably. In the ...
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What Makes Me Different From the Others?