Decided to file BK7 this week. How should I build path to recovery?

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Hello all. This is my first post on the forum however I have been reading some of the threads for about 10 or so days and it has been super helpful. I thought I would post my specific scenario with accounts and see if you all could offer advice on the recovery path.

Over the last 3 years, I racked up over $100K in unsecured credit card debt due to several poor life decisions, wedding, decline in income and eventually job loss. I always thought I would outrun my expenses by out earning them. I realize how dumb that was. I supported my wife and I the past year on only my income and it really became evident that I had put us in a situation that was nearly impossible to get out because our bills were 2k more than the net coming in.

I started to explore options to consolidate debt and quickly came across tons of articles that claimed those services are scams and rarely ever work. They did suggest filing for BK. I came across this forum while doing research on the impacts of going that route and I cannot believe how helpful everyone has been to others looking for advice. It makes facing reality a bit easier by knowing that there is life on the other side of this. I can rebuild my life (and my wife’s) by learning form the mistakes that I made thus far by getting a fresh start. She shouldn’t have to pay for the mistakes I made prior to being with her.

The accounts that I have that will be getting burned:

American Express: Delta, Hilton, Marriott cards

Barclays: Ring

Capitol One: personal Visa and business Spark account

Chase: Sapphire Reserve and Marriott

Citi: Diamond, Thank You Preferred, Double Cash

Discover: It

USAA: World Mastercard, Personal Loan

Florida Credit Union: Car loan (possibly)(will I be able to buy anothe vehicle if I do this? I have significant negative equity and nearly impossible to refinance due to this)

(All of those are over $150k in total with no assets like home or car that are paid off)

My checking accounts are with USAA and Chase (Military checking).

I have yet to file as my appointment is May 2nd with my attorney. After our consultation, he suggested to file a Chapter 7 because I will be eligible for it. I am filing solo because all of that was only in my name. My wife only has student loans to worry about so she doesn’t need to file with me.

Do you all have advise on what I should do prior to filing? I am worried that because I have to burn USAA and Chase accounts, they will not want to have a relationship with me despite having a checking account with them. What should I do after filing, after 341 and after being discharged? I would like to build up credit again responsibly quickly so that I can use the VA loan to purchase a home within 2-3 years as we start a family.

I apologize for the long read, but thank you for taking the time to read and hopefully offer some insights.

[FireMedic1]

The best thing for now is getting your BK stuff ready to file and go thru the motions until your DC'ed. Take care of the present and worry about the future later. In short the banks that will have to be burned. You may have to go the secured route to start the rebuild. The easiest out of the bunch will be Cap1 1 yr or so after BK and then maybe secured Disco. Some of the stories here indicate that you would want to move your money out of a credit union (Fl Credit Union) due to some will take whats in the bank to help pay the debts. Cross Collateral. (Not sure but others will chime in about USAA. It is a credit union and/or is not.)

Check this thread out for after BK: https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Latest-info-on-USAA-CC-s-after-BK-in-which-they-weren-...

I saw you had no responces yet. Just wanted to throw in a few tidbits. Good Luck! It can only get better after DC and be debt free. Its not a thing that makes you feel great having to file. But sometimes we have to go against the grain to get a second chance.

[Anonymous]

Take it slow... as others told me it's a marathon not a race. Keep reading and rereading posts on here... to get advice about what banks are likely to do what for you. Post any questions you have. Prequalifications are your friend. Dont run your debt up again no matter how tempting it is!!!

[CJIII1983]

Welcome to the fourm, I am going though the same. I filed chp 7 on $20,000 worth of debt. On the credit union part, I have a auto loan and credit card with a credit union, I had to reaffirm both to keep my truck.

[MyDataMyChoice]

For your car with negative equity... perhaps you want to 'retain and pay' for a while after bankrucpy.... if the credit union allows you

You are not reaffirming... so down the road (when your credit get better) you can just forfeit the car back to them...  

[Anonymous]

Many of us have gone through similar situations. The first thing to do, be optimistic. It is not going to be easy but the burden of debt is worst than the patience when trying to rebuild. I never thought I would have to file for bankruptcy in a lifetime...let alone at 28. Fast forward 4 years, I do not make the same mistakes I made before. No matter what, I stay medically insured, watch my unnecessary shopping and never miss car payments. I filed due to 2 repo’s and thousands in medical bills. My paychecks were on the verge of being garnished so I had to make a decision for my family. I have a supportive husband (wasn’t my husband back then), who works very hard and puts us in a position to never be in stressful debt again. We have some debt but we are fortunate to get a lot more approvals than denials or people frowning at us.
My attorney advised me to stop making payments on the accounts I planned on including. I INCLUDED EVERYTHING. I knew there was a chance I would be blackballed but hey. Some banks are forgiving after a ch7 because they look at the whole picture. I have gotten the dreadful denials saying it’s because of my ch7 (USAA is one unfortunately) and I know in a few years I won’t have that problem.
6 months after my ch7, I did purchase a ($32,000) brand new car with a $2,000 down payment and my husband, as a co-signer. Even after 2 repos(they were crap cars with crap interest rates). I got a few credit cards that gave me increases after 3 months. I am in a good place. Sometimes too good because I sometimes go overboard with my applications! I only had 2 credit cards before ch7 so the fact that I can get approved is very addictive. Please don’t judge! Once again, I am smart with it and my husband steps in when need be lol. My fico score is 702, I have $120k in unsecured credit lines and I am at 6% utilization. I still have a long way to go but this site has truly helped me! Good luck with everything and NEVER feel like you aren’t making the best decision. I hope my experience gives you a little hope. It’s better to get the ch7 done so you can start rebuilding. The sooner the better!
Also, I am from a large military background so thank you for your service!

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Wow thanks all for the input. greatly appreciate it