Your credit rating is a score assigned to you that indicates your ability to fulfill your financial obligations, based on your credit history. After bankruptcy, your credit rating is poor, but it is possible to improve it.

1. Understanding
Your Credit Rating
What you need to know
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2. Table of Contents
What is a Credit Rating?
Take Charge of Your Credit Rating
How to Build a Healthy Credit Rating
The Best Advice
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15
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3. What is a Credit Rating?
Your credit rating is a
score assigned to you that
indicates your ability to
fulfill your financial
obligations, based on your
credit history.
After bankruptcy, your credit rating is poor, but it is
possible to improve it.
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4. Negative marks on your credit report
can include:
• Late payments
• Collections
• Liens & Judgments
• Bankruptcy, Proposals & Debt
Arrangements
Taking charge of your credit rating
can help restore it sooner.
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Take Charge of Your Credit
Rating

5. #1: Get a Copy of Your Credit
Report
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Find out what is on it. You
cannot start addressing the
problems if you don’t know
what they are.
Make sure that all the
information on your credit
report is accurate and up to
date.
Take Charge

6. Paying your debts is the most effective way to repair
your credit record. Always ensure that you make
payments regularly and on time. This will help you
build a credit record that is attractive to creditors.
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#2: Pay Your Bills
Take Charge

7. 7
#3: Look at Debt Management
Options
Take Charge
Improving your credit rating will
be challenging if you have more
debt than you can repay.
Consider your options including:
• a consumer proposal and
• as a last resort, bankruptcy.
Eliminate your debt so you can have a fresh start.

8. Follow these simple steps to repair your credit.
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How to Build a Healthy
Credit Rating
It is possible to restore your credit
even after filing bankruptcy or a
consumer proposal.

9. Paying your debts in full and on time shows that you are
a good credit risk.
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How to Build a Healthy
Credit Rating
Pay all bills
on time

10. 10
If there are errors, contact the reporting agency and
have them corrected.
How to Build a Healthy
Credit Rating
Get a copy
of your
credit report

11. 11
Savings don’t get reported on your credit report but do
improve your finances and provide a down payment.
How to Build a Healthy
Credit Rating
Open a savings
account and use it
only for savings and
emergency funds

12. 12
Rebuild your credit with small loans at first.
How to Build a Healthy
Credit Rating
Consider getting
a secured credit
card

13. 13
How to Build a Healthy
Credit Rating
Multiple applications can lower your credit score.
Apply for only
one secured
credit card

14. 14
How to Build a Healthy
Credit Rating
Keep your interest costs low.
Delayed payments lower your credit rating.
Use credit wisely
and always pay
the full balance
on time

15. The Best Advice?
• Pay your bills on time.
• Don’t bounce any cheques.
• Don’t overdraw your account at the bank
(even if you have overdraft protection).
Show the credit system that you are a responsible money
manager and that when you borrow money, it’s because you
want to, not because you have to. In this way you will repair
your credit and avoid a bad credit report in the future.
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16. There is hope.
You can be debt free.
Read: How to Repair Your
Bad Credit Report
Or give us a call at
310-PLAN