You got over your head in debt and so you realized you needed to file for bankruptcy. Much of that debt was on your credit cards, although you also had medical bills, a mortgage, student loans and a lot of other debt that was impacting your financial situation.
But it seems to you that the credit card debt would have been easily avoidable — along with those super-high interest rates. In order to avoid having this happen again, should you just stop using them entirely after you file and your debt is cleared?
Secured credit cards can actually help
For one thing, you’re probably not going to qualify for standard credit cards immediately after filing for bankruptcy. You have to build your credit score back up again so that you can become eligible for loans.
This is where secured credit cards come into the picture. You get them by putting up a down payment that protects the lender by backing up any spending you do on that card. You can then use this new card to help increase your credit score. After doing this for a while, you may apply for traditional cards again, and you can continue to increase your credit score.
As you can see, credit cards are not bad in all situations, and what’s really important is using them properly.
Filing for bankruptcy
If you’re at the point where you believe you need to file for bankruptcy, then it’s time to start looking into all the proper steps to take. At the same time, you can consider all of your options for getting back on track financially afterward.
