Bankruptcy regret?

[Anonymous]

Just curious, does anyone regret going into bankruptcy? What is the most difficult part of the bankruptcy process? Thank you all.

[sccredit]

I had a very difficult bankruptcy. Trustee sold our house because of the amount of equity ($250k). The bankruptcy was caused by a really really bad business failure (fraud by a partner). I have a lot of regrets on what casued the bankruptcy but the actual filing of it I do not regret. I was being sued for millions of dollars and couldn't afford to defend the lawsuits much less pay judgments if they came. 

Coming to terms with having to file was hard. We had managed our personal finances with extreme care. My filing was 99.96% business debt. Scores before the implosion of the business were 785-800. I pushed off filing for months trying to figure out another way. There wasn't one. The day I filed I slept better than I had in 2 years. It allowed for a clean start from a very bad situation.

[Anonymous]

Yes, I regret not doing it sooner.

[jmw1]

Yeah I definitely have one big regret about bankruptcy. 

I regret not doing it sooner.

I slept much better after bankruptcy. I was able to turn on the ringer to my cell phone for the first time in years. I don't feel the least bit bad about doing it.  I never, ever had any thoughts about wishing I didn't file. 

Difficulties are different between 7 and 13. A well-planned 13 is very different from a 7.  

[Anonymous]

I honestly at first was so upset at myself for filing because:

1) My attorney would not let me keep my car becaus of $10,000 negative equity & 22.9% interest.

2) I lost my apartment because it was time for a renewal and bankruptcy was an automatic disqualification.

I was basically forced back to living in a cheap old apartment and using public transportation for about six months...

After the 3 months of my discharge, I was in a much better position:

1) I was able to get a brand new car with a much lower interest rate.

2) Once my 8 month lease was up at my "starter" apartment, I was able to move to join the AMLI Properties (Basically, I can move to any of their properties across the United States).

3) My credit is better than it has been in the past 10 years.

I wish the initial part would not had been so hard but looking back now I would do it again if I had to (I pray I never have to). 

[sccredit]

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@jmw1 wrote:

I was able to turn on the ringer to my cell phone for the first time in years.  

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It spolied me, I never my ringer turned back on. I got so used to not having it ring I keep it on silent 24/7 anymore. LOL

[Anonymous]

I appreciate the comments. I am having such a hard time making this decision. I can pay my min. On all my cards every month but am broke after all payments are made. I keep telling myself I can do this for the next 5 years but not sure I can. Thanks everyone.

[Anonymous]

@Anonymous My wife and I were in the same situation. Making all the minimum payments but hardly getting by and making progress. We actually dragged it out for months with hope that we can make a dent on the balances. We regret not making that decision to file sooner!

At this point, it's the best decision we've made. Like others have mentioned, we are able to sleep a lot better and no longer have to block all of these "scam likely" calls lol. Credit scores are going up every month and we got a few unsecured cards. 

We burned majority of the major banks, so that's the only part that sucks since we are blacklisted for a long time. On the brighter side, there are other banks that will take be happy to have your business. Hope this helps. Eventually time will go by and those opportunities will come along. 

[jmw1]

If you can make minimum payments and nothing more, you are at the right time to file. If you are making minimum payments and then charging back up to the credit limit, you are a bit late to the party to file for bankruptcy.  Remember all those minimum payments represents dollars going to waste until you actually file. That could be months or a year's worth of minimum payments without making a meaningful dent in the debt after a year. Once the late fees start, it's pretty much over. Once you decide to file, stop paying minimums on unsecured debt and save money for your lawyer and your retirement account. 

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

I regret not filing.