7 year rule
The 7 year rule kicks in up to 180 days after the last late payment was made on the debt or 180 days after it went into default status, which would normally be 30 days after the payment was due. Some people get tricked into making a payment on an old debt for even $1.00 and that bumps up the date that the 7 years starts from, so beware. Of course, as good and honest people we want to pay off our debts but situations arise making bankruptcy necessary sometimes. The laws changed in 86-87 that made the 7 year rule more strict. But before that, the debts could be just renewed more easily and it took a bunch of lawyers and tons of $$$ to unravel the complicated laws. Also the law allows your info to be viewed for up to 10 years if you are getting a large loan or applying for a job that pays over $75,000. So you see, the information is hard to get rid of. If your credit card debts were unsecured (as most are), and they were charged off (some aren't) then you are in good shape, but if they went to judgement or lein, then the judgements can be renewed forever. This is the way that I understand it and have done tons of research on it from the various legal and government websites. Unfortunately, it appears that there is not much strong expertise on this board in this area. I guess the knowledgable aren't willing to give away the hard to learn information and the credit agencies ight tooth and nail to keep their knowledge away from consumers, because otherwise the average person would be able to more easily manipulate the system. I hope this helps you. Feel free to email me if you have additional questions.
