What is "bankruptcy"?

What is "bankruptcy"?

Janet Bodnar (Deputy Editor, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance) gives expert video advice on: Who is eligible to file for personal bankruptcy?; How do I file for bankruptcy?; How long will filing for bankruptcy impact my credit rating? and more...

Bankruptcy is a way of having all of your debts discharged. Discharged is another way of saying eliminated. So, if you're really in so much debt that you've tried everything else, you've tried to go it alone, you've sought help from a credit counselor, nothing seems to work, you can be relieved of your unsecured debts.That would be debts where there's no property securing them, for example. Credit cards would be a good example of something like this. Bankruptcy would eliminate debt on credit cards.