The results of your bankruptcy case will be part of your credit record for ten (10) years. The ten years are counted from the date you filed your bankruptcy case.

This does not mean you can't get a house, a car, a loan, or a credit card for ten years?  Absolutely NOT. The question is, how much interest and fees will you have to pay? And, can you afford your monthly payments, so you don't begin a new cycle of painful financial problems.

Credit Reports:  In order to eliminate any bad credit ratings that may continue to appear on your credit report, you should make copies of Schedules D,E, and F from your Bankruptcy case along with your Bankruptcy Discharge and mail them to the three main Credit Bureaus so they can code these creditors with the Bankruptcy information.  The balance of the discharged debts should be zero, meaning you do not owe anything on the debt.  You should provide the same information to each credit bureau.  Here is a list of the nation’s largest credit-reporting agencies:

∙    Equifax, P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374;1-800-685-1111;www.credit.equifax.com.
∙    Experian, P.O. Box 2104, Allen, TX 75013-2104; 1-866-200-6020 www.experian.com
∙    TransUnion Corp; 1-800-888-4213; www.transunion.com

If you have not obtained a credit report via annualcreditreport.com during the last year you are entitled to one free credit report from that resource.  You should check your credit report about six months after your bankruptcy discharge is entered and file a dispute with credit reporting agencies if the reported information is not correct.  Debts incorrectly reported as having a balance owed will negatively affect your credit score and make it more difficult to get credit.