My rebuilding journey

[BKIN2010]

A month after discharge and this is where I stand:
1. $1400 firestone card (unsecured no AF)
2. $300 Orchard (unsecured no $39 AF)
3. $1000 Cap 1 (secured $29 AF)
4. $2500 Local CU (secured no AF)
5. $2500 Local CU (secured personal loan)

I plan to keep this for a while to rebuild. Cheers!

[Logan]

A month after discharge and this is where I stand:
1. $1400 firestone card (unsecured no AF)
2. $300 Orchard (unsecured no $39 AF)
3. $1000 Cap 1 (secured $29 AF)
4. $2500 Local CU (secured no AF)
5. $2500 Local CU (secured personal loan)

I plan to keep this for a while to rebuild. Cheers!

The problem I see is you're paying alot in annual fees an you're paying someone interest. A big waste of money. I had just as many accounts after 1 year without paying a dime for fees or interest.
People here don't understand that your BK will be more restrictive than your credit scores for a few years and paying interest and fees will not change that.

Logan

[BKIN2010]

Logan, Thanks for your post. I do not plan to pay any interest. Any amounts charged on these cards will be paid back in full each month. I think I can manage the whooping $68/yr.

[Logan]

Logan, Thanks for your post. I do not plan to pay any interest. Any amounts charged on these cards will be paid back in full each month. I think I can manage the whooping $68/yr.

Try to shed these cards asap for no-annual fee cards. It does look like your paying interest in personal loans and it's not necessary is all I'm saying. I'm 3.5 years out of BK, never paid anyone interest or any annual fees and my scores are in the 700's. It can be done......

Logan

[HHM]

Also, its a tad excessive, you really only need 3 unsecured trade lines (personally, I think that is debatable, but nevertheless), shed the annual fee cards as soon as you can. The extra few months of credit history is not worth keeping those cards.

[BKIN2010]

The personal loan is interest free. it is a program through employer (they pay the interest)...Thanks for the input.

[Logan]

The personal loan is interest free. it is a program through employer (they pay the interest)...Thanks for the input.

And this reports to the credit agencies? I need to work for your company. Anyhow, prior to your credit card's charge for annual fees try to replace them or at least cancel the Orchard Card. HHM is correct, 3 trade lines is the magic number for rebuilding mainly because that's what it takes to get a mortgage and that is a big goal for most of us.

[tobee43]

it's funny, lets see now, if you have too many credit cards its not good and if you have to few it's not good.

we have two...at first used them monthly, now we only use them i.e. a large or expensive car repair, since we wanted to be able to stop payment in case the car wasn't fixed correctly. (we learned the hard way not all debit cards allow stop payments!). we pay them off within 30 days AND...if it's been a few months that passes we charge gas or groceries to keep the cards in an active status.

i still go with time is the best healer of one's credit....the more time between your discharge and the present, the higher your score will go. there is really something to the old adage "time heals all wounds". just in my most humble opinion and you know what they say bout those!

good luck!!

[HHM]

it's funny, lets see now, if you have too many credit cards its not good and if you have to few it's not good.

we have two...at first used them monthly, now we only use them i.e. a large or expensive car repair, since we wanted to be able to stop payment in case the car wasn't fixed correctly. (we learned the hard way not all debit cards allow stop payments!). we pay them off within 30 days AND...if it's been a few months that passes we charge gas or groceries to keep the cards in an active status.

i still go with time is the best healer of one's credit....the more time between your discharge and the present, the higher your score will go. there is really something to the old adage "time heals all wounds". just in my most humble opinion and you know what they say bout those!

good luck!!

I concur, ultimately, time is the NUMBER 1 factor in credit rebuilding after BK. Of course, those that I have seen my other rants on this topic, I am generally against focusing on credit in the first place. It is not worth the time, energy and money, because your credit largely takes care of it self over time. Your energy and money should be focused on adjusting habits and lifestyle, educating yourself about money, so that you NEVER need to use credit again (even for buying a house).

[Logan]

I concur, ultimately, time is the NUMBER 1 factor in credit rebuilding after BK. Of course, those that I have seen my other rants on this topic, I am generally against focusing on credit in the first place. It is not worth the time, energy and money, because your credit largely takes care of it self over time. Your energy and money should be focused on adjusting habits and lifestyle, educating yourself about money, so that you NEVER need to use credit again (even for buying a house).

Considering the houses in my area that I'm looking to buy are 500K+ I will have to get a loan. I could just keep paying rent at $2500 a month but I'd rather not.

[tobee43]

hhm, we both are on the same page on this subject matter.

i cannot stress the importance and the significance of rethinking and re-programing one's way of spending and learning proper money management as well as goal setting. (including a house and you know how i feel about that one for certain! )

this is an instant gratification society. whether it's filling one's tummy with a McDonald's hamburger, or fixing an instant something or another, most of our society has never learned patience or acquired the fortitude to "suffer" and save for something! saving hasn't been embedded in many of our children, they just want it and want it now.

until that line of thinking stops, people will continue to believe they WANT everything under the sun. i think the readjusting in one's thinking, is what do we REALLY need to realize our goals??? and what do we need to do to be REALLY happy?? it's not acquiring more credit cards; rest assured

[HHM]

Considering the houses in my area that I'm looking to buy are 500K+ I will have to get a loan. I could just keep paying rent at $2500 a month but I'd rather not.

You "choose" to believe that, doesn't make it so. If you really committed to it, you could do it, but my guess is, your too addicted to a particular lifestyle that you can't even imagine how you would....sorry to be blunt.

[tobee43]

Considering the houses in my area that I'm looking to buy are 500K+ I will have to get a loan. I could just keep paying rent at $2500 a month but I'd rather not.

logan...i wish i could get this over to you, i'm reading an article from time magazine, actually the title of this issue is "Rethinking Homeownership". wow, i read this after arguing with my daughter who recently moved to another state and is refusing to buy, and, as i'm of the old school, that one should always own a house. her view is WHY? the point is have a roof over my head and let someone ELSE pay for the repairs. if the stove goes, let the landlord worry about it, if the landscaping needs to be redone, let the landlord take care of it, roof leaking?? septic gone...oh well, just move... not my problem...is just some of her arguments.

as i'm reading this time article, i do realize people "my" age also sought homeownership to be part of a community and better education for our kids, more stability, for lack of a better description of how we viewed it. however, i now do believe she has some excellent arguments against buying another house. (she has one in another state that she sold with a land contract, as of course we know the market is so bad and now, at least her mortgage is being pd as well as her taxes, and if the people default prior to them assuming the existing mortgage, she loses nothing, as the house goes back to her).