If you are one of thousands in Michigan who has gone through a bankruptcy of any sort, thinking about the light at the end of the tunnel can be difficult. While bankruptcy is never an easy process, the entire point of it is to get you back on your feet and monetarily sound. However, when you are recovering from bankruptcy, this can seem like a pipe dream, particularly since your credit is likely in tatters. There are many ways to start recovering from bankruptcy, though, and one of the best is to… get a credit card. While this might seem oxymoronic, it is not. According to US News & World Report, secured credit cards are a great way to help rebuild credit after bankruptcy.
A secured credit card is different than an “unsecured” credit card, which is what most people think of when the word “credit card” is mentioned. In a secured credit card, you actually put down a deposit, and then this deposit, in turn, becomes the max for the credit card. So if you put down a deposit of $500, your maximum limit is then $500.
The idea is that the security you put down acts as insurance for the lending agency. In turn, you are then allowed to borrow against that amount and pay it off so that the credit card company can report this to the credit bureau. This, in turn will help fix your poor credit.
Secured credit cards can help you signal to the credit bureaus that you are able to handle credit well, and in turn this will help you get back on your feet and get your credit score up to where it needs to be.
