Personal Bankruptcy

[pipejockey]

Just curious if any of you have been hired after declaring bankruptcy. Is this really the death knell of a pilot? I don't see how ones personal finances are anybodys business except if you are applying for credit. Sometimes you fall on hard times due to circumstances beyond ones control. Sure, there are people who just spend like its going out of style, and then wonder why they are in so much debt. But I really feel that your personal finances are not your employers business, and at the very least, shouldn't be allowed to be accessed until after being offered an interview. That way, you can have a chance to explain yourself if necessary.

 

[snoopy_1]

I was furloughed after 9/11 and had to declare bankruptcy, couldn't pay both bills and rent. This caused problems at a future employer.

Keep your credit good if you can, if you're in a situation like I was and you have to file bankrupt than do it. I am not going to let it stop me from securing a good flying job, "God only gives you what you need, the rest is up to you."

 

[Gear Down]

Your financial responsibility is a part of your reflection about yourself. Can't control money issues shows a potential employer that you may lack in personal responsibility.

 

[FlyFlyFly]

I would encourage you not to declare bankruptcy. You WILL pay for it for the rest of your life. Don't buy this "its gone in 7 years" stuff. It is on your credit record FOREVER and you will pay higher interest on any loans that someone is dumb enough to give you FOREVER. I have a client 9 years out of bankruptcy, their mortgage is 1/2% a point higher in rate due to that bankruptcy. That is costing them an extra $1,500 per year on this loan, and they have a 710 FICO score now.

Realize that it will be there forever and generally employers run credit checks when they hire because they issue company credit cards. They WILL see it. They will use all available information on you to make hiring and retention decisions.

I encourage you to find a way to work it out. DO NOT go to Consumer Credit Counseling, they are a ripoff and you will end up with a bankruptcy on your record using them. Visit Clark Howard's website, he has some resources on dealing with an overburden of debt.

Best of luck solving your problem.

 

[AeroBoy]

First off: to some of the above posters (not naming any names), lose your holier-than-thou attitude.

I had to declare bankruptcy a year after my apartment caught fire, which happened a few months before I graduated from college (I didn't have rental insurance). Seven years later, my credit score is better than most (about 730), and we just refinanced the house with a 4.8% rate. So if you have a valid reason for doing it, employers and banks will understand (after all, the people working there are actually humans and make mistakes, too). It was a tough decision to make, so don't have any illusions that it's easy to do. In fact, I found it all to be very stressful at the time...

Oh, and one more thing, if you rent an apartment, get rental insurance--it's only about $100 a year. Trust me, I learned this lesson the hard way.

 

[chperplt]

Don't buy this "its gone in 7 years" stuff. It is on your credit record FOREVER and you will pay higher interest on any loans that someone is dumb enough to give you FOREVER.

Are you serious?? My parents filed CH 7 10 1/2 year ago. My father lost his job and not many people were looking to hire a 56 year old computer administrator. Anyway, the BK stays on your credit file for 10 yeas, not 7, and then it's GONE.

Sure they've had the higher interest credit cards for the first few years after the filing, but they've also had an AMEX card for the last 4 or 5, and just bought a 45K car at 0 % for 60 months.. Remember, not everyone qualifies for that..

The short and skinny.. Yes, it may affect future hiring.. Maybe NOT. It depends on who's doing the hiring.

For those that think bankruptcy is a measure of ones worth as a person.. Get off your f-ucking high horse, because it's going to hurt when you fall and we all laugh. Sh!t happens in life that people don't always have control over.

 

[bart]

Keeping agreements says alot about character...

 

[Swass]

Amen Bart. Don't bite off more than you can chew and you should be fine.

 

[chperplt]

Keeping agreements says alot about character

I would disagree with that statement. Doing everything possible to keep agreements says a lot about character.

How many of the 9/11 furloughees have been forced to declare bankruptcy? Situations dictate what we do in life.

Granted, the person who spends like there is no tomorrow and then files bankruptcy to get away from paying the money back, is a shady character. The person who loses their job and is unable to replace that job or income level quick enough to keep from financial ruin, is not in that same boat.

If you're facing a foreclosure and have the option of filing bankruptcy, which would give you more time to get caught up, or move into the cardboard box outside, which would you chose?

 

[RockyMnt1]

Who is to blame?? Not me!!!

Sorry Outermarket,

I have to disagree that lenders are any part of the problem.

The fact that lenders offer loans does not mean that ANYONE needs to take them up on their offer. It is called personal responsibility. Just like in flying, YOU are the PIC of your finances. Just like in flying, there are things that are legal but not smart. It is up to you to avoid those situations that are not to your advantage. Having an unforeseen catastophic event is one thing. Signing on the dotted line and then whinning about it later because you didn't understand what is in the contract is a totaly different matter.

It is not anyone's fault/problem but your own.