How can I improve my credit after filing bankruptcy less then 2 years ago?

Answer 1

You need good credit to offset the bad credit. If you have credit that was not included in the BK (don't laugh, it happens) then keep it and treat them right. Make your payments on time!

Now you need to RE- Establish your credit reputation. The absolute worst thing you can do now is to have a late payment, so be VERY careful. Start with a small card, like a gas card with a $100 limit and pay it off THE DAY YOU GET THE BILL. Make sure that any card you get has (1) no annual fee and (2) has a 30 day grace period where no interest is charged. That way you are not paying for the credit as long as you pay them off immediately. Eventually you want to have 3-4 open and active accounts that have been open for 18-24 months.

You also want to begin sending in dispute letters for everything that was connected withthe BK to try to get it off your credit report. There are usually pretty glaring inaccuracies in these accounts and since they were discharged the creditors tend not to reply to disputes within the 30 day window. With any luck, some of the old accounts will come off and your credit score will rise. Make your letter SIMPLE - just dispute the information, don't give them more information. If your first letter doesn't get it fixed, then wait a few weeks and send another one. Each time they have 30 days to respond - or delete the entire account from your report....

Good Luck!

Answer 2

Depending on whether you filed Chapter 7 or Chapter 13, the answer might be a little different.

If you filed Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, the debts are basically eliminated on the day your filing was approved by the courts. That means that you are starting all over again. The bankruptcy will, of course, remain on your credit report for years (typically 7, but maybe as much as 10), but you can start rebuilding a credit record immediately. That is kind of the "good news" but the "bad news" is that creditor find the Chapter 7 filing to be a little worse that the Chapter 13 filing.

If you filed Chapter 13, your debts are greatly reduced, and you are probably still making payments. That is the crucial point to rebuilding creditworthiness in Chapter 13, also called the "Wage Earner Plan." Payments made on time are reported, much like a creditor reports payments received on time. Defaulting on a Chapter 13 is a huge strike against you, however, since you went to the trouble of organizing the debts and negotiating with a court to arrange a partial repayment -- then defaulted.

Rebuilding credit after bankruptcy is much like beginning as a young adult. Accept a select few credit offers, understanding that your terms will not be wonderful initially. I recommend a creditor that specializes in "higher risk" customers, since EVERY credit check/application decreases your overall score by approximately 5 points. Applying to a company that is unlikely to grant the request simply lowers your score without benefiting you at all.

Above all, keep your spending in check and ALWAYS make payments on time. That is, after all, the best way to improve a credit score. Also, be prepared for a very long process, since the bankruptcy will be there for creditors to see for a long time.

You are also allowed to attach an explanation of the bankruptcy to your credit report by contacting the credit reporting agencies. This is helpful if your circumstances might warrant special consideration, and it isn't likely to hurt your chances in any case.

Answer 3

As soon as you are able, take out a couple of small loans from companies that report to credit reporting agencies, and make all payments on time. Apply for a secured credit card or whatever you are able to get, and use it carefully but regularly. Make all payments on time, paying off the balance as soon as it is due. After 1 - 2 years, your bankruptcy will be old enough to have less impact on your credit, and your good credit will outweigh any bad credit.
Oh, and send a copy of your discharge documents and schedule F to the credit reporting agencies. You want to make sure the accounts that were included in your bankruptcy only report as in bankruptcy, and not with any derogatory comments or late payments.
Best of luck to you.

Answer 4

1) get a copy of your credit report and make sure everything is reporting correctly, ie all the creditors that were supposed to be included in the bankruptcy report as such.
2) clean up any incorrect reportings by writing to any company on your credit report that is not reporting right.
3) get a secured Mastercard, Visa, or even try and get a department store card.
4) car loans are great too for helping build credit.

The important thing is make sure your bureau is correct today, and from there, re-establish your credit. Don't let it get you down, it's a long term annoyance but not a permanent one...Chapter 7's drop off in 10 years and 11/13 in 7. And after you re-establish credit and get some history going, it's not much of an issue anyway

Answer 5

Hopefully you kept at least one credit card open, if you did not then by purchasing a car so you can make payments will drastically help your cause. Yes you filed BK however you still can get a car loan just with a high rate. If none of these are options for you then just sit tight and it will handle it self. You will once again be attractive to creditors again. WHY? because you have no debt and your ability to repay increases because of this. Get another card, and pay it off every month and you will be GOLDEN!!

Answer 6

There are a couple of different ways to go about this. You can take the long view of it and diligently pay all of your bills on time and apply for those high interest credit cards. You will pay through the nose in interest but if you make your payments on time every month, in a couple of years, the offers for low interest credit cards should start rolling in through the mail and via email. You may want to try to get one of those unsecured loans from lending institutions such as CitiBank. They offer high interest loans up to $15,000 on signature based on your income. Usually signature loans max out at three times your monthly income. Making your payments on these each month will increase your credit score over the years. At the same time, each year that the bankruptcy is on your credit, the less damaging value it has against your score.

If you need to get your credit score up quickly, you can hire a professional credit restoration company to remove it. (Yes, it can be removed under certain conditions. It really isn't that difficult. And most people don't know it but the FCRA does provide ways for that to happen.) This has the benefit of allowing you to being able to get your credit affairs in order quickly and be ready for any credit offers you may need immediately, for instance applying for a mortgage or a refinance.

IF YOU ARE GOING TO USE THIS TYPE OF SERVICE I STRONGLY URGE YOU TO DO YOUR DUE DILLIGENCE. THERE ARE ONLY THREE LEGITIMATE CREDIT RESTORATION COMPANIES IN THE UNITED STATES, DUE DILLIGENCE IS NECESSARY TO MAKE SURE YOU ARE USING ONE OF THEM.

If you have any questions regarding your credit issues, please feel free to email me at [e-mail]

Answer 7

start applying for credit cards and use them to rebuild your credit.