Credit Cards After Bankruptcy - What Is The Truth
Frequently the record of a bankruptcy will remain on a credit report for at least 10 years.
The discharge of all your debts by the bankruptcy court does bring a great sense of relief to many people.
Shortly after you have received your discharge the record of you bankruptcy will be available to the public.
Bankruptcy listing companies will take this information and sell it to many different entities including financial institutions and credit card companies.
These companies will in turn start sending you credit card offers each week for at least a year.
Acquiring credit cards after bankruptcy is relatively easy.
However most of the offers received in the mail are nothing short of scams.
If you carefully read the credit card agreement carefully you will find that there are many pit falls that will quickly cause financial problems.
Credit cards are bad business for most people to begin with.
Credit card companies made more than 90 billion dollars yes billion dollars on fees and penalties last year alone.
Most of these fees are paid by people who cannot afford them.
It is common knowledge that most divorces are the result of money problems and the number one cause of money problems comes from the use or misuse of credit cards.
If you have had a recent debt discharge by the court you should already know what caused you to get into debt in the first place.
In most cases you have worked with a credit counselor during the bankruptcy process.
The first piece of advice these companies provide is to cut up your credit cards.
After bankruptcy you should be living on a cash basis and the zero budget process.
It is very important to stay on course and not repeat your mistakes by using credit cards.
Failure to do so is a direct route back to financial ruin.
If you must use plastic money then apply for a debit or bank check card.
Even this will cause you to spend more than you would if your used cash.
Studies have shown that using cash causes an individual to spend between 15 and 18 percent less than when using plastic money to pay for groceries.
Spending cash causes psychological pain that keeps people from over spending.
In addition people who use debit cards to make purchases spend about 10 to 12 percent less than those who use credit cards.
Using credit cards after bankruptcy is a fast track to a second bankruptcy.
If you must have a credit card after bankruptcy you should only consider a secured card.
Basically you must deposit money into an account that provides equity for the card.
Your card limit is the same as the amount you have deposited into the equity account.
If you default and do not make the monthly payments then the equity is use to pay the debt.
Do not fall into the trap of thinking you must have a credit card to rebuild your credit rating after a bankruptcy.
This is just another ploy by credit card companies to get you to sign the credit card agreement.
Just say no and stick to a cash basis.
Careful checking of the agreement will reveal that the company can raise your interest rate to as much as 31 percent without real cause.
Credit card companies have in many places replaced the mafia as the local loan shark.
Credit cards after bankruptcy just do not make any sense.