The bankruptcy process is daunting, and most filers focus completely on getting the bankruptcy process completed. But life goes on after filing for bankruptcy, and it is important to start immediately working on rebuilding your credit score.

If you have filed for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, this will stay on your credit report for 10 years. None of the debt amounts or details will be listed on your credit report, but it will state that the filer’s debts were “discharged in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy.”

Chapter 13 bankruptcies take longer to remove from one’s credit report. The actual bankruptcy itself stays on for only seven years. However, this seven-year period does not officially begin until the debtor completes a Chapter 13 payment plan. Following through on this plan usually takes about five years. So if you have filed a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, it takes about 12 years to have it removed from your credit report.

Although bankruptcy remains on a credit report for years, one who has filed bankruptcy can begin rebuilding his credit as soon as his bankruptcy is over. To improve one’s score after filing, it is a good idea to get a secured credit card and pay the balance in full every month. Secured cards typically require cash to be deposited up to the amount of the credit limit of the card and the debtor will be required to pay a yearly fee of around $30.

A secured credit card can be a hassle for clients who have just gotten over dealing with keeping up with credit card payments and other debts that are often overwhelming. However, a secured credit card will show on a credit report just like any other credit card. It is worth the effort for a bankruptcy filer to go through the added steps a secured credit card requires so that he can begin to have positive feedback show on his credit report. Every month of on-time payments will help his credit. In about 6 months, he should start to see his credit score improve as a result. About a year after filing bankruptcy, a filer can typically apply for a non-secured credit card as a result of his credit score increasing. This will further aid in increasing his credit score. If the filer qualifies for a new, secured debt, such as a vehicle or furniture purchase, this will further strengthen his credit report.

The good news is that if a filer who works to rebuild credit can see their credit score rise up to between 650 and 680. As more negative items, such as late payments, begin to disappear from the credit report, this score will continue to rise.

It is good to keep in mind that credit reporting agencies focus on the most recent credit history, within the last three to five years. When you establish positive credit history and continue to maintain it, your score will continue to get stronger. Make sure you check your credit report each year to see that there are no errors. If errors are found, be sure to contact the credit reporting agency and rectify the situation.

If a bankruptcy filer also has a foreclosure on his credit, it will make it more difficult to get another mortgage. A foreclosure will stay on one’s credit for seven years. However, the older it is, the less likely it will affect one’s ability to obtain a mortgage. A good mortgage broker can typically shop many banks to find a lender that is willing to offer a mortgage to one with a prior foreclosure on his credit. Often, a bankruptcy filer who also has a foreclosure on his credit will qualify for a mortgage within three or four years of the date of the foreclosure, as long as it has been approximately two years or more after filing bankruptcy.

Related Posts:

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• How To Rebuild Credit After Filing Bankruptcy
• Can I Save My House By Filing Bankruptcy?
• Filing Bankruptcy Yourself