Bank finance articles and tips

It is important for debtors to know that the major credit reporting agencies should remove a bankruptcy filing from an individual's credit after 10 years for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and after 7 years for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Debtors who have faithfully complied with court ordered repayment plans and/or bankruptcy proceedings can rest easy knowing that a once tarnished credit report will no longer hinder them from reestablishing buying power and future credit....

Now that you have your Credit report chances are that there are accounts on there that are considered negative accounts. These negative accounts are the ones that you either paid late or didn't pay at all and they are the ones that are hurting your credit score.

There are some things that you need to know about these negative accounts. The first thing to do is to make sure that those negative accounts are actually yours. As I am sure you all know we are living in the times where identity theft and credit fraud are practically a way of life. It is not uncommon for people to have negative accounts on their credit reports for purchases that they never made or for lines of credit that they never took out. Both the credit reporting agencies and the United States Congress know this to be a fact and that is why legislative measures have been taken to give debtors a way to dispute these invalid debts. The first way is to contact the creditor directly. If you can convince them that you did not open that particular account you can get them to stop reporting that account as delinquent. If that doesn't work then you can file a dispute directly with the credit reporting agency.

Declaring a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a great financial option for those struggling with crippling debt - but there may be a few questions that you're asking yourself: what exactly happens to your credit score when you declare bankruptcy? How will your credit be affected once your bankruptcy is confirmed? What should you do in order to take advantage of the second chance that bankruptcy gives you?

Luckily, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is there to help curious consumers to shift through any credit confusion. Passed in 1970, the Fair Credit Reporting Act is a law enforced by the Federal Trade Commission that protects the basic rights of credit consumers in the United States. While the FCRA was established to put an end to extreme harassment from creditors and debt collectors, this act also allows consumers to receive one free credit report per year in order to check for any reporting errors that may cause a person's credit score to be lower than usual.