“How long will it take to repair my credit?” is an excellent question to ask because it is very hard to rebuild your credit after you have declared bankruptcy. As you’ve heard before, it takes a while to raise your credit score because of the consequences you’ll have to suffer after making this drastic choice. It’ll take nearly 10 years to get the bankruptcy off your credit report, but it will take less than that to fix your credit. The amount of time it takes to erase the damages in your credit depends on your situation. You have to accomplish this by paying your bills on time and turning down loan and credit card offers.
If you begin to fall behind on one of your bills, your credit score will drop. Don’t worry about that, you just have to catch up on your bills without falling behind on them again. Work overtime if you can and cut back on free spending. If you have kids and you normally give them an allowance of $30 weekly, start giving them only $10. They can get part time jobs of their own if they’re at least 16 years old. You can even make them help you pay your bills if absolutely necessary.
They might not like it, but every little bit helps. Before you know it, you’ll have excellent credit and you’ll be able to have all the fun you want. Your kids will learn how to appreciate the value of a dollar and you will be able to reward them afterward with a night out at the movies and dinner.
Don’t you want the finer things in life? Well, you can’t have that if you don’t do what’s expected of you. You are in charge of your finances and there is no room for slacking. Making that mistake will just hinder you from moving forward and it will keep you in a financial box. If you have other bad factors on your credit report, start tackling as many as you can. This will help you break free from having bad credit.
Don’t get discouraged if you begin to struggle as much as you did when you were in school. Nothing in life comes easy, and starting over is like restarting a homework assignment from scratch.
After 10 years, you’ll be able to do all the things you weren’t able to do before. This includes getting a new credit card, and buying a nice luxury car. There is nothing wrong with treating yourself to something special after bankruptcy and it may even be very therapeutic. As long as you don’t make the same mistakes, you’ll never have to turn to bankruptcy again.