Legal Question in Bankruptcy in Maryland

Purchasing a car after Ch. 7

How long after my case is filed and ruled on do I have to wait to apply for a car loan?


Asked on 9/14/02, 2:11 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

G. Joseph Holthaus III Law Offices of G. Joseph Holthaus

Re: Purchasing a car after Ch. 7 (or with a Chpt. 13)

You can apply for a car loan at any time, the real question is whether the lender will make the loan.

Typically a lender will not make a loan while the bankruptcy case is pending, but this is not an iron clad rule since a Chapter 13 does not conclude until after

all the payments under the trusteeship have been made and this is often several years. Nonetheless, post petition loans are often made but be forewarned that the interest rate

and other terms of such a loan are usually quite stringent. This is one of the effects of filing for bankruptcy. Despite this adverse effect, you will need to begin to build credit and

such a loan is one way to do so. Alternatively, you can wait until the terms of such a loan are more favorable but this is often several years if at all and often is based on some other factor such as

a significantly positive change in your financial condition.

This is why you may have wanted to consider alternative other than filing for bankruptcy such as restructuring debts and pursuing an accord and satisfaction. You are where you are and the best thing to do is to

start to build your credit history as you did the when you began. Keep in mind that successive bankruptcy filings will make your situation considerably worse so you should manage credit well to avoid this adversity.

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Answered on 9/18/02, 3:44 pm


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