More senior citizens today are filing for bankruptcy than ever before. Filing for bankruptcy does not necessarily mean financial ruin for the rest of your life, but it can require a different strategy for seniors in order to properly rebuild their credit. The steps involved with a senior citizen bankruptcy are often different than filing for bankruptcy protection earlier on in your life. Here are some top considerations when looking at recovering from bankruptcy as a senior citizen.
Why Seniors Need Good Credit
Many people assume that there is no extra cause for concern with seniors when they file for bankruptcy. Seniors are less likely to need a new mortgage on their house or have some of the ongoing expenses that many people may have while raising a family. There are however a number of unforeseen costs that many seniors have to deal with. Seniors may need to get access to a loan in order to receive medical care, they may need assistance from their credit cards in order to cover some of their monthly bills. Many seniors that are living on a fixed income struggle with cash flow problems and getting access to credit products can often be a welcome help. Many seniors, unfortunately, get in over their heads and this can lead to a case where bankruptcy is one of the only options to alleviate the debt cycle.
Having Peace Of Mind With The Budget
Saving money for unforeseen expenses is often one of the best ways to avoid a credit crisis as a senior. Taking control of your finances and making a budget can give you peace of mind and make sure that you don’t have to take out unnecessary loans. It’s not always easy for seniors to manage their budget with their limited retirement savings and help stretch further. Accessing areas where you can sacrifice items in your budget, using budget tracking applications or using seniors programs to reduce costs can often be excellent ways that you can save money. Tracking senior discounts and even taking advantage of programs like free meals for seniors can help you save in an ongoing sense.
Social Security Benefits
Many seniors are also faced with the choice of drawing their Social Security benefits early on. Seniors are eligible to start receiving her benefits of the age of 62 but they can access a larger settlement if they choose to take out their Social Security benefits at 67 or even more if they withdrawal at 70. If you are a senior that’s not currently receiving benefits, it’s important to properly budget and determine when a good time to start drawing from your benefits may be. Relying on Social Security too early could mean that the money may run out early on as well.
Taking The Option To Lean On Family
Saving on some of your living expenses can often be a wise choice. Even though it may be difficult to burden your kids, moving in with your children for just a year could be an excellent way to save money and get back on your feet. Splitting expenses with your children and working to pay down debts can be an excellent solution to recovering from bankruptcy and repairing your credit.
Use Future Credit Wisely
After filing for bankruptcy you can often open a secured credit card account. With the help of regular monthly payments, you can work at rebuilding your credit until you graduate to an unsecured card. It can often take a few years of paying off a secured credit card to rebuild your credit but this can be one of the best ways to ensure that you can get back on the road to securing your finances. In order to make sure that the process can be done effectively, ensure that you are paying off your balances on time and not incurring interest charges.
Utilizing Insurance Coverage Wherever Possible
Taking on an insurance plan for your health could be an ongoing monthly expense. Adding medical insurance to your monthly expenses could equal out to a far lesser expense than having to pay for a major medical cost down the road. Choosing the option to take on various forms of medical coverage in insurance coverage can make sure that you can be well covered for medical expenses into the future.
Have You Filed For Bankruptcy Is A Senior?
Contact our legal team today and we can take you through the process of filing for bankruptcy is a senior as well as managing your road to recovery in bankruptcy. We have helped consumers of all ages to navigate through the process of bankruptcy as well as manage the interest and credit which is been incurred throughout your past financial history.
Contact us today if you are considering filing for bankruptcy or you’re recovering from the process of bankruptcy as a senior citizen.