How to Bounce Back from Bankruptcy Quickly!
More and more American families are being devastated by bankruptcy. Here are easy steps that anyone can follow to bounce back quickly! There is life after bankruptcy!
You cant watch the news without realizing that millions of Americans are struggling to pay their bills. Delinquencies and foreclosures are on the rise and many have no where to turn to for help.
Bankruptcy may be the only decision for some.
The economic and emotional harm brought on by bankruptcy is something few can understand. While it seems like it is the end of the road, it is important to remember that it is really a new beginning. And this time you want to do it right!
You can get your life back faster than you ever dreamed! Here is how!
The most important thing to keep in mind is that you can not let the bankruptcy define who you are!
Do not beat yourself up! Promise that you will never let something like a bankruptcy happen to you again, but then move on. It was one time in your life, not who you are!
Now is a great time to develop multiple streams of income.
Even if you have a great job, one of the best ways to secure your families financial future is to derive your income from more than one source. Now that most of your bills have been eliminated, why not invest in yourself and learn internet marketing, or some other skill that could bring in a few hundred extra dollars a month? It beats blowing your money eating out and in the long run will make you feel much better about yourself!
Of course, you also need to re-start your financial life! The first thing you will want to do is reestablish your bank accounts. This may not happen overnight. A credit union, if you have one available to you, may be a good option. Go in and establish a relationship. Explain what happened to you and find out what it is going to take to get an account. Then do it!
Next, you will want to reestablish your credit. This step might seem counterintuitive. After all, wasnt it too much credit that got you into this mess in the first place?
The only way to improve your credit score is to use credit. You have probably already learned that having a low or no credit score is very expensive.
But you have terrible credit! Who is going to give you credit right after a bankruptcy? Fortunately, there are a couple of options.
A Certificate of Deposit loan from your bank is one of the best things you can do to restart your credit file. What you will need to do is go to your bank and see if they will allow you to open a CD and take a loan out against it. Although you will end up paying interest on your own money, in the long run it is a sound strategy because you will reestablish credit quicker than you would be able to otherwise.
Another good option is opening a secured credit card. You may have already gotten a few offers in the mail! Secured cards work in the same way a CD loan does. The lender will require you to make a deposit and issue you a credit line against it.
Be smart when you choose your credit card company! You are looking for a low annual fee. Avoid paying an application fee if at all possible. The ability for the card to convert to unsecured at some point in the future is another great feature to look for
Managing your newly reestablished credit properly is very important. You need to establish good payment habits as lenders will be much less forgiving of delinquency after your bankruptcy than they were before.
You need to monitor your credit report monthly.
You need to make sure that lenders are not reporting accounts as open and delinquent that were included in your bankruptcy. Unfortunately, this happens quite often!
One of the most convenient things that you can do is to create a form letter to send out to any lender that was included in your bankruptcy that attempts to collect from you afterwards. You should include your personal information, the case number and your attorneys contact information. This makes it easy for you to respond and lowers the chance that something will fall through the cracks.
If you follow these easy steps, you will have your life back in no time!
You cant watch the news without realizing that millions of Americans are struggling to pay their bills. Delinquencies and foreclosures are on the rise and many have no where to turn to for help.
Bankruptcy may be the only decision for some.
The economic and emotional harm brought on by bankruptcy is something few can understand. While it seems like it is the end of the road, it is important to remember that it is really a new beginning. And this time you want to do it right!
You can get your life back faster than you ever dreamed! Here is how!
The most important thing to keep in mind is that you can not let the bankruptcy define who you are!
Do not beat yourself up! Promise that you will never let something like a bankruptcy happen to you again, but then move on. It was one time in your life, not who you are!
Now is a great time to develop multiple streams of income.
Even if you have a great job, one of the best ways to secure your families financial future is to derive your income from more than one source. Now that most of your bills have been eliminated, why not invest in yourself and learn internet marketing, or some other skill that could bring in a few hundred extra dollars a month? It beats blowing your money eating out and in the long run will make you feel much better about yourself!
Of course, you also need to re-start your financial life! The first thing you will want to do is reestablish your bank accounts. This may not happen overnight. A credit union, if you have one available to you, may be a good option. Go in and establish a relationship. Explain what happened to you and find out what it is going to take to get an account. Then do it!
Next, you will want to reestablish your credit. This step might seem counterintuitive. After all, wasnt it too much credit that got you into this mess in the first place?
The only way to improve your credit score is to use credit. You have probably already learned that having a low or no credit score is very expensive.
But you have terrible credit! Who is going to give you credit right after a bankruptcy? Fortunately, there are a couple of options.
A Certificate of Deposit loan from your bank is one of the best things you can do to restart your credit file. What you will need to do is go to your bank and see if they will allow you to open a CD and take a loan out against it. Although you will end up paying interest on your own money, in the long run it is a sound strategy because you will reestablish credit quicker than you would be able to otherwise.
Another good option is opening a secured credit card. You may have already gotten a few offers in the mail! Secured cards work in the same way a CD loan does. The lender will require you to make a deposit and issue you a credit line against it.
Be smart when you choose your credit card company! You are looking for a low annual fee. Avoid paying an application fee if at all possible. The ability for the card to convert to unsecured at some point in the future is another great feature to look for
Managing your newly reestablished credit properly is very important. You need to establish good payment habits as lenders will be much less forgiving of delinquency after your bankruptcy than they were before.
You need to monitor your credit report monthly.
You need to make sure that lenders are not reporting accounts as open and delinquent that were included in your bankruptcy. Unfortunately, this happens quite often!
One of the most convenient things that you can do is to create a form letter to send out to any lender that was included in your bankruptcy that attempts to collect from you afterwards. You should include your personal information, the case number and your attorneys contact information. This makes it easy for you to respond and lowers the chance that something will fall through the cracks.
If you follow these easy steps, you will have your life back in no time!
About the Author:
Wendy Polisi is Vice-President of Finance the Dream, the nations premier Lease Purchase and Rent to Own Program. To learn more about life after bankruptcy, please visit them at liferebooted.org " the blog that tells you everything you need to know about restarting your life after financial setback.
You like it? Share it!
posted by SolveItQuick at
9:58 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home