If you’ve recently had your bankruptcy discharged, you may be wondering what happens next.  Once your bankruptcy case is over, you are legally free of the debt obligations included in your bankruptcy.  It’s important to check your credit report after your bankruptcy has been discharged.  Make sure all your debts included in the bankruptcy are marked as closed and showing as part of the bankruptcy – rather than showing as open collection accounts.  If you find errors on your credit report, write a letter to the appropriate agency to dispute the data.  Be sure to check your credit report at all three credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

Once your bankruptcy is legally discharged, you can focus your efforts on saving money and paying off any debts that were not eliminated in the bankruptcy (i.e. child support, taxes, alimony).  In rare instances, you may still get a phone call or letter from a creditor trying to collect a debt.  Legally, any debt included in a bankruptcy case is uncollectable.  If you receive a call or letter relating to a debt that was included in your bankruptcy case, contact the creditor in writing and explain that your debt was included in the bankruptcy.  If the creditor continues contacting you, call your bankruptcy attorney.

Be very cautious about acquiring new debt after your bankruptcy is discharged, since you have no legal protection against any new debt.  Just like anyone else, you can be sued, have wages withheld, and lose property such as a car or personal property for any unpaid debts.   If you are plan to buy a car, house, or get a personal loan after your bankruptcy is discharged, you will probably need to explain why you filed for bankruptcy.  Lenders may be afraid that you will default again.

Reasons that lenders will commonly accept for bankruptcy include: large medical bills, or a sudden job or business loss.  Lenders may also be particularly concerned with verifying your income.  Getting approved for credit cards without paying extremely high interest rates will be very difficult.  Some lenders, particularly large banks will not deal with borrowers who filed bankruptcy until 7-10 years have passed and the bankruptcy is no longer appearing on your credit report.