If you have fallen on some hard financial times, you may be looking into repairing your credit. Sometimes unfortunate circumstances follow that old cliché that "trouble comes in threes" and all three cause you to go under financially. Maybe you were laid off from your job, injured, or got involved in a business that went sour. If you have to declare bankruptcy, it can show up on your credit report for up to 10 years. However, it will bring your outstanding debt balances back to zero, and this may actually help your credit report.

Now that you are recovering financially, you want to know the best strategies for credit repair after bankruptcy. At this point, you need to move forward with new knowledge and new financial habits in order to improve your credit score. There are ways to get the bankruptcy removed from your credit report by disputing it with the credit bureaus if it’s not being reported 100% correctly. If the credit bureaus are unable to verify the bankruptcy, it must be removed by law.

One of the new habits you need to implement for a successful plan for repairing your credit after bankruptcy is to check your credit report every year. You want to make sure that there are no errors or charges on your report that are negatively affecting your score. If you find such problems, you need to follow the procedures to dispute them and get them cleared up. You also want to check to make sure that the good financial moves you are making, like paying your bills on time, are being reported and are reflected in your score.

To recover from a devastating bankruptcy, you need to get in the habit of paying all your bills on time. Whether you pay your bills on time or not is one of the biggest factors that the credit reporting companies take into account when they calculate your score. Use post-it notes, calendars, alarms on your cell phone, whatever it takes to remind yourself of when your bills are due and get the payment sent off at least 3 days before it is due to make sure it arrives on time. This will be a slow process, but if you can stay focused and get really good at making your payments on time, your credit report will reflect your good behavior and your score will start to increase.

To avoid financial disasters in the future, set aside an emergency fund for yourself. Experts recommend having a least 3 months of income set aside so that if you are injured or laid off you will have a cash cushion while you get back on your feet. It will also help you deal with those unexpected expenses like cars breaking down or home appliances failing. If you can successfully create these new, healthy financial habits, you will enjoy financial peace.