As we have written about, and as many people know, filing for bankruptcy is a major decision in a person’s life. It will help you clear out many debts that are leading you towards financial despair. However, bankruptcy is also very hard on the person who files. It will take some time to rebuild your credit and to get back to the way things were.
So let’s say that you’ve already been through a bankruptcy, and you are trying to get back on stable financial footing. It is an admittedly difficult goal to achieve, but with some hard work — and by going about the journey in the right way — you can reestablish yourself financially. How do you do it?
There’s no exact plan that will work for everyone. Everybody is going to have a unique situation, and they will have factors that make one plan impossible but another completely appropriate.
With that in mind, you should get your credit score, a new credit report, and then you should implement a strict budget to help you stay on top of your finances. Start saving up some emergency funds just in case a major purchase springs up in the near future.
Then you will want to obtain a credit card, one that is secured. This may be more difficult than you remember it — but stick with it. Obtaining a new line of credit is very important after bankruptcy. Sometimes it is even beneficial to take out a loan from the bank (with a purpose, of course), and then stay on track to pay it back. This will help rebuild your credit.
Source: USA Today, “Personal Finance: Re-establish credit after bankruptcy,” Robert Powell