Smart Tips About Personal Bankruptcy You Can Use
Smart Tips About Personal Bankruptcy You Can Use
Filing personal bankruptcy is not like it used to be. It used to be reserved for low income families that just could not make payments on their lines of credit. These days, people of all income levels are filing for personal bankruptcy. Read through the advice that follows to learn if your situation requires you to take the big leap to file for bankruptcy.
A critical tip for anyone considering a personal bankruptcy filing, is to make sure not to wait too long to seek relief. Delaying a bankruptcy filing can result in potentially devastating events , including home foreclosure, wage garnishments, and bank levies. By making a timely decision to file, it is possible to maximize your future financial options. Getting a clean start faster than you may have thought possible.
Don't be afraid to apply for credit for purchases such as a new home or car just because you have a recently discharged bankruptcy. Many lenders will take your new financial situation into account. They may be more likely to loan money to someone who has no debt due to a bankruptcy than to the person with, say, 75,000 dollars in credit card debt. The fact that you have no monthly credit card payments can make you look like a better risk.
A huge mistake people make before filing for bankruptcy is maxing out their credit cards. This can lead to disaster when you file and the credit card companies might not discharge the debt. If you can, you need to stop using your credit cards at least six months before you file, and ideally for a year prior. Also, do your best to pay the minimum payments on these cards for at least six months before you file.
Once you have filed for bankruptcy, you will have to do your best to build your credit all over again. Do not be tempted to allow your credit account to have nothing on it, so it will appear to be fresh. This will send a bad signal to anyone who is looking at it.
If you are planning to file for bankruptcy, you do not need to lose your home, car or other items that you have loans for. If you wish to keep them, however, you must make the payments on a timely basis in order to avoid repossession. If the payments are too much to handle, your bankruptcy attorney may be able to arrange for an evaluation of your loan and negotiate a lower monthly payment. In the case of a home, you may look into a loan modification or refinance to reduce your payment amount.
Consider seeking advice in an online forum before you make any permanent decisions regarding personal bankruptcy. From there, you will see many people who long ago went through what you are now facing. It can give you a great perspective to help avoid making their same mistakes, and learning their lessons without first suffering those consequences.
Hopefully, you have learned what you need to know about personal bankruptcy. The advice that has been gathered into this article is meant to help you make the right choices when the time comes to file or to help you decide if it is the right move for you to make. Use this as a guide to help decide.