What are my options?

[beforeverlos]

I just turned 20 years old. A year ago, I had a fulltime job paying 300 dollars a week. In october, i financed a car for 12,000 dollars. Back in march of this year, I lost my job and have been unable to get another one since. In late May, my car was reposessed. A week ago, the car was sold by the bank and I received a bill for the difference.. 9,000 dollars. With this, I also have credit card debt in the ballpark of 900 dollars and an overdrawn bank account with fees totalling 130 dollars.

Totally, I have a debt of about 10,000 dollars.. at 20 years old, is bankruptcy an option? I am not in school currently, and am struggling to find a job. I'm harassed daily by creditors looking for money I don't have. Even if I get a job tomorrow, I'm still looking at years to pay off this debt.. And I have plans to enter into college soon, so I'll be amassing even more debt. Can anyone give some good advice?

[NoMoreCards]

Bankruptcy will stay on your credit report for the next 7-10 years, and it is the very worst thing to do if it can at all be avoided.

Because you probably do not have any property that the creditors can take (own a house, have a car, etc...) there is no reason to rush into filing BK.

What I would do is keep looking for a job. Once you find one, see if the creditors will agree to payments (they will when they have no choice).

10K isn't impossible to reasonable pay off, and I think that filing BK at your young age, with such little debt would not be in your best interest.

[ravs]

There is no age limit to file bankruptcy. You may even benefit from filing now at this young age because you have years ahead of you to rebuild your credit while you build your career. Bankruptcy may give you the fresh start you need to move on with your education and future earnings. However, you should be aware that student loans are generally not dischargeable, and that receiving a discharge in bankruptcy may reflect poorly on your credit for some time, making it harder for you to receive private student loans at a desirable rate.