2 Lifestyle Changes You Must Make After Bankruptcy
Feeling hesitant to file bankruptcy is a normal sensation people experience, and this is often because there are consequences of filing. There are also many benefits of filing, and you must thoroughly weigh these out before you decide to go through with it. As you are making this decision, it is also important for you to realize that you will need to make some lifestyle changes after you file. Some of these changes will be mandatory, including the following two changes you will have to make.
Learn to live without credit
The first thing you will be forced to do is learn to live without credit. When you file for bankruptcy, you might be required to turn in all your credit cards to the trustee handling the case. If you are not required to turn them in, you will still not be able to use them.
When you file for bankruptcy, you must list every credit card debt you have. These debts will either get discharged or included in a repayment plan (depending on which branch of bankruptcy you use), but you can expect the creditors to close these accounts as soon as they are notified about your bankruptcy.
If you had been accustomed to charging everything you buy, your life will change after you file. You will no longer have the ability to charge purchases, and it might be hard to get a new credit card after filing. If you can learn to live without credit, you may be able to avoid getting into debt again, which would be a lifelong benefit of bankruptcy.
Buy cheaper things
Another change that will change after bankruptcy is your ability to get a loan. While it may not be impossible to get a car loan or house loan months after filing for bankruptcy, it is usually hard to get a loan with a good rate.
Because of this, you may have to learn how to live with cheaper things, such as used cars instead of new ones. If you cannot qualify for a decent interest rate on a car loan, you might weigh your options and realize that buying a cheaper car would be better for you at this time. You could then work on saving up some money for the next few months so you can pay cash for a cheaper car. This too would help you stay out of debt.
Making lifestyle changes after bankruptcy is something you should expect, and you should view these as positive changes. Learning to live in a different way could help you avoid the same financial problems you currently have, and you can accomplish this by seeking advice from a bankruptcy lawyer in your neighborhood like Greg Dunn Bankruptcy Attorney.