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Comment by ouid | Hacker News Reader

why would any of those people care if you have declared bankruptcy? It's much worse for your credit to have a bunch of debt that has higher priority than what a creditor might extend to you. If I'm selling you a cell phone on a payment plan, I would much rather it be the case that you don't have 100k of student loans to pay for first.

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In corporate finance it wouldn't. They would look at your cash flow and ability to service the debt. Personal finance is weirdly moralistic and backward looking.

Corporations have assets and generally behave rationally and non-emotionally if you take them to court.

> why would any of those people care if you have declared bankruptcy?

Landlords aren't in the business of providing housing for free, and seek restitution for damages and unpaid rent through the courts. A low credit score or bankruptcy shows that a potential tenant could incur significant damages and unpaid rent, and leave the landlord high-and-dry when the bill comes due.

In today's owner's market, there are plenty of other potential tenants without a poor credit history or bankruptcies.

Did you read the comment? The presumption of that statement was a bad credit to start with.

Aka. bankruptcy vs bad credit, not compared to a good credit score.

Tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid student loan debt is bad credit. Your credit score goes down the more money you owe. It is first and foremost a measure of how much you currently owe. This largely determines whether you will be able to take on another debt.

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