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Rebuilding Your Credit: Following Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Following Chapter 7 bankruptcy, your next challenge is rebuilding your credit. Look over your credit reports from the major credit-reporting bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. You are entitled to one free report every 12 months from each. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy will be on your credit report for 10 years.

A good chunk of your credit-report negatives should have been removed or changed to reflect your new financial status. If you dispute anything, promptly contact the credit-reporting bureaus. Or, hire a reputable credit-repair company to do it for you.

Next, apply for a secured credit card or secured loan to establish a history of reliably paying back loans. A credit card or loan is “secured” when you provide your own money as collateral. To receive the credit card, you’ll place a deposit that matches the card’s credit limit. For a loan, you’ll place an amount of money equal to the size of the loan in a special account that is inaccessible to you until you pay off the loan.

Make sure to pay monthly loan payments on time. Credit-card purchases should never total more than 30 percent of your credit limit. Again, make timely payments … ideally in full.

If you follow this game plan, offers of credit frequently will be extended to you within months after the close of bankruptcy. In a creditor’s eyes, you are no longer swimming in debt, you will likely spend more cautiously, and you are ineligible to file for bankruptcy again for another eight years. Bankruptcy may temporarily challenge your credit situation, but it need not ruin it.

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JACK V. CORRADINO, ROBERT C. PAPA, JR., JOSEPH A. DEFURIA, TIMOTHY J. FONSECA, AND FRANCIS J. SWEENEY III ARE ALL CERTIFIED BY THE SUPREME COURT AS CIVIL TRIAL ATTORNEYS. Corradino & Papa, LLC is located in Clifton, NJ and serves clients in and around Newark, Irvington, Harrison, East Orange, Orange, Belleville, Hillside, Maplewood, South Orange, Kearny, West Orange, Elizabeth, Glen Ridge, Bloomfield, North Arlington, Vauxhall, Union, Montclair, Millburn, Lyndhurst, Nutley, Bergen County, Essex County, Hudson County and Union County. See All Locations Attorney Advertising. This website is designed for general information only. The information presented at this site should not be construed to be formal legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship. The hiring of an attorney is an important decision. The information you obtain in this website is not, nor is it intended to be legal advice. You should contact an attorney for individual advice regarding your situation. Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances. No aspect of this advertising has been approved by the supreme court. Here are the criteria for the various awards we’ve won: Disclaimer : Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.

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