by First Rate Debt Solutions
6. October 2009 11:22
After the bankruptcy laws were changed in 2005, there was a drop in the number of filings each year. But that drop was short lived as the declining economy pushes more and more Americans into filing for bankruptcy protection. The numbers in 2008 were up over 30% from those in 2007. These frightening statistics are all too real.
The real question now is after filing, how can you recover your financial well-being and get back on track? First and foremost you are going to have to be patient. It’s a long but achievable process.
- Start by applying for a new credit card. One with the lowest fees and rates you can qualify for. Remember when you were in college and got your first card? You were excited even though it was 30%. That kind of card may be all you can get. Take it and spend a little bit of money on it and pay it off every month.
- Keep your debts at a minimum and make every payment on time. This is critical to rebuilding your credit history.
- After a year or so, apply for a another credit card with a lower rate and ask that the rate be reduced on the original card now that you’ve proven you make your payments on time.
- Keep your balances under control. Do not spend a lot on any cards or loans. Part of a good FICO score is a low debt to available credit ratio. Don’t buy anything you can’t afford to pay off in one month.
- Don’t get sucked into any kind of credit repair scheme. There is no magic pill to wipe out a bankruptcy. It takes time and discipline. The bankruptcy will stay on your credit report for 7-10 years but if you play your cards right, you can start to rebuild your credit before that.
The easiest way to recover from financial distress is to avoid bankruptcy in the first place. Debt Settlement can often be the optimum solution to helping you avoid the long-term negative effects of a bankruptcy while still providing serious debt relief. The key to a successful debt settlement program though is to get into the program before you are “bankrupt”. Sometimes if you wait too long to address the situation, you leave yourself no option but to file.
If you think you might be headed that direction, contact the consultants at First Rate for a free evaluation to see if debt settlement can help you.
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