How to Rebuild Credit After Bankruptcy in 5 Simple Steps

Tired of hearing about the devastating impact a bankruptcy has on your credit?

Can you recover from bankruptcy even though it stays on your credit reports for the next 10 years?

Well, let me answer with a resounding yes. More importantly, I’ll give you some real solutions to how you can recover and start establishing credit after bankruptcy.

Even though the majority of information circulating the Internet simply tells you to go get secured credit cards there’s a lot more to rebuilding your credit than that alone.

First of all I would suggest not one, not two, but at least three new positive trade lines reporting on your files to get you started on the right track.

Your new active trade lines should reflect the following for maximum score benefits:

1. Favorable credit limits
2. Positive payment history
3. Low debt to credit limit ratios

Now you’re probably wondering how anyone can possibly obtain any decent sized credit limits fresh out of bankruptcy, but let me be the first to tell you it’s possible -- and I’m about to show you how.

Here are five steps you can take right now to rebuild your credit after bankruptcy:

Whether you decide to work on repairing your personal credit on your own or decide to enroll in a reputable credit repair service you should definitely implement a plan. Many times certain items listed on your credit report may be inaccurate or may not reflect the actual status of a particular account.

For example, you may have accounts showing as open collections that should be listed as discharged in bankruptcy. Another common issue is duplicate negative listings where a creditor is guilty of reporting one account twice on your reports.

This also happens quite a bit with collection agency accounts as junk debt buying continues to grow exponentially.

Imagine if a store like Best Buy offered you a $5k line of credit if you made an initial purchase of $300 or more at its store. Would that be an offer you would be willing to take to start rebuilding your credit?

The good news is there are companies in the marketplace right now that offer these types of incentives and credit limits to attract new customers while offering a way to rebuild your personal credit reports.

Once you set up your account you can continue to use this line of credit towards the purchase of thousands of products the company offers, and it’s important that you do so you can continue to build a positive payment history.

Remember, it takes more than just one positive account to start establishing your creditworthiness so with a second line of credit you can increase your overall credit capacity.

Now that you have two personal lines of credit you should also open a secured credit card with a reputable bank. Avoid opening a credit card with a high risk lender because it can hurt your credit scores in the long run.

Lenders like Public Savings Bank or Orchard Bank offer secured credit cards that you can open with as little as $200, and they report to all three major credit agencies.

Opening new accounts is just the beginning because now that your credit reports are showing that lenders and creditors are extending credit to you a positive payment history will show how you handle it.

So keep your usage at no more than 30 percent and always pay your bills on the due date or ahead of time if possible.

You can always rebuild your credit after bankruptcy if you have a solid plan that you put into action. Remember, credit is trust, and in order to build that trust you have to lead by example through proper action, positive activity, and unwavering accountability.

Marco is founder of the Business Credit Insiders Circle, a step-by-step business credit building system. You may contact Marco directly at: marco@businesscreditblogger.com. Follow Marco on Twitter @MarcoCarbajo and read more of his insights on how to obtain corporate credit cards without putting your personal credit at risk.