“Dear Lewis,
We are looking to rent a house and we want to know how long our chapter 7 bk we filed in 2006 will be on our records. we are having grave difficulty getting any credit because of this.
How long does a chapter 7 stay on someones trw? if yu can answer this promptly it would be greatly appreciated.
MaryAnn”
Dear Maryann,
Bankruptcy can stay on your credit report for up to 10 years.
You should have no trouble renting a home. Any reasonable creditor knows that you cannot file bankruptcy again for a couple more years. So you should be a good credit risk.
I have countless clients who have had no trouble renting homes, buying cars, obtaining new mortgages, much sooner than they expected.
You might not get a perfect interest rate on a new car loan, but it is a good way to re-establish your credit to show good payment history for the future.
Good luck!
My name is Lewis Roberts and I’m an attorney licensed in Florida and Georgia. My practice focus is consumer bankruptcy, real estate issues/closings, and mortgages. I also have Florida real estate broker and mortgage broker licenses. I am a proud member of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA), National Association of Consumer Attorneys (NACA), and a graduate of Max Gardner’s Bankruptcy Boot Camp. I enjoy helping people with decisions that impact their financial well-being.
Legal Disclaimer: This is for educational purposes only. It is not to be relied upon as legal advice. It also does not create an attorney-client relationship. No such relationship is formed with attorney without a written agreement.
If you have a bankruptcy question you’d like to ask just use the online form.
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I agree. Sometimes all it takes is volunteering to put up a slightly bigger security deposit to ease a landlords mind but private landlords seem to be very open to renting to people after a bankruptcy. I can’t think of a single person that I know after bankruptcy that was not able to find a place to rent.
We deal with this on a daily basis. Lewis is correct and so is Steve in their advice. I would like to add one bit of advice that we often use, that seems to work very well, and is many times overlooked… a good heartfelt hardship letter. Explain what you went through and your desire to get back on track. We use this so often that we have a basic template already set up as a merge. If you would like a copy I will gladly forward it to Steve to send along.
Andy,
Please send it to me. I’d love to share it on the site. Great tip.
Steve
I agree. Sometimes all it takes is volunteering to put up a slightly bigger security deposit to ease a landlords mind but private landlords seem to be very open to renting to people after a bankruptcy. I can’t think of a single person that I know after bankruptcy that was not able to find a place to rent.