Refinancing After Bankruptcy

Posted by Nick Niesen on October 29th, 2010

Being faced with the possibility or reality of bankruptcy is a frightening prospect. Those facing this dire financial situation are definitely likely to have concern regarding their financial options after bankruptcy. One question people frequently have relates to whether or not they will be able to benefit from refinancing after bankruptcy.

Refinancing is not impossible right after bankruptcy. However, immediately after you file bankruptcy is not the best time to try to refinance. You should wait until your credit scores begin to show improvement before filing for bankruptcy. The best way to improve your credit score after bankruptcy is to consistently pay all of your bills on time.

Additionally, it is a good idea to wait until you are able to get a credit card before attempting to refinance as well. Of course, you don?t necessarily need to use the credit card, but lenders will look upon the fact that you have one as a way to demonstrate creditworthiness.

Keep in mind that as long as lenders see the bankruptcy on your credit report, you will feel the impact in higher interest rates and payments.

Special Situations for Refinancing After Bankruptcy - While it is in your best interest if you have a fixed rate mortgage to wait to try to refinance until enough time passes after your bankruptcy to show a significant improvement on your credit score, there are some situations where you might need to go ahead and try to refinance right away.

For example, if your current mortgage is an adjustable rate mortgage, and you are faced with the reality that your payments may soon go too high for you to be able to afford them, you might need to go ahead and try to refinance. Even though lenders will look at your poor credit and recent bankruptcy as a negative and offer you only high interest rate options, what they offer might be preferable to your current adjustable rate mortgage.

Whether or not you are better of staying with your current loan or going with a refinance depends on your particular situation. It depends on the terms of the original loan as well as what lenders might be willing to offer you in light of your recent bankruptcy. Be sure to read the fine print of your current loan to find out if any early repayment penalties apply.

The Impact of Refinancing - Keep in mind that when you are trying to rebuild your credit, you need to take care to avoid doing anything that could have a negative impact on your credit score. Every time a lender runs your credit report, it will have a negative impact on your credit score. While you are trying to rebuild your credit, the worst thing you can do is have every lender in town pull your credit report.