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From The Bankruptcy Files: Recognize Trouble Before It Gets Overwhelming

February 15, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment


There are many reasons someone may find themselves in enough debt to consider bankruptcy. While choosing to file for bankruptcy is a difficult decision, it's often one that can't be avoided. Here are three reasons many people use when choosing to file for bankruptcy.

1) They have an excessively high debt load. This can be from credit card debt, loans or even medical bills. Through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy with which the slate is effectively wiped clean or reorganization with a Chapter 13 filing, the person in debt can often benefit from the filing.

2) Many file to save their home from foreclosure. Filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy will automatically stop a foreclosure on a home. The homeowner remains responsible for the amount borrowed, but the past due payments can be included in a repayment plan. The court must approve the plan however. In addition, many people use bankruptcy as a way to save their car and other property likely able to be repossessed.

3) Another common reason people file bankruptcy is when one or both workers in the home lose their job. In this case, they usually have financial obligations they can no longer meet. The typical person's lifestyle is guided by their income and with a sudden loss of employment it can be difficult to stay afloat financially.

Most debtors realize that they are financially in trouble well before they are filing for bankruptcy, but there are a few whose bankruptcy files showcase the fact that possibilities for avoiding this drastic step were not realized. Instead, a steady decline resulted in the dreaded filing and if the debtor had but pulled the fiscal emergency brake just a bit earlier, she or he might have avoided a long term mistake!

Here are some of the most commonly disregarded warning signs that - when observed carefully - may help you to get back on track:

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Bankruptcy: Some Things You Should Consider Before And After You File

February 15, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment


Bankruptcy may be termed as a situation when a person is not able to pay his debts due to lack of money. The person who is bankrupt for the first time is given a discharge period of one year prior to the date of bankruptcy order but in some cases, the bankruptcy discharge period is less than one year. Bankruptcy has a bad image and is publicly advertised so If you ever face such a situation, then make sure that you look for all possible options to deal with it as soon as possible.


In order to declare a person as bankrupt, it is the duty of the court as they are officially responsible for issuing bankruptcy orders against an individual. Declaring bankruptcy is done either by the individual or any of his or her creditors. After that, the control of various assets and properties is given to a trustee. This will either be a civil servant, an officer appointed by the court or a licensed insolvency practitioner. The person who is appointed is wholly solely responsible for uncovering the debtors liabilities and assets and then enhances the credit return from the available assets under certain course of actions.


Once a bankruptcy order has been issued to you, your creditors should no longer have to chase you for payment as the payment then becomes the responsibility of the Trustee.


While dealing with bankruptcy issues, remember it is not a do-or-die situation as anyone can go bankrupt. Among various proceedings that are involved in bankruptcy, the foremost is to divide your assets equally among all your creditors.


So, there are various procedures for insolvency cases.


How Can You Become Bankrupt?


There are a couple ways by which you can become bankrupt:

* Voluntarily (by debtors themselves)

* Involuntarily (by the creditors)


However, the order of bankruptcy can still be valid if the individual refuses to accept the proceedings or denies agreeing to them. So, it is the duty of the person to cooperate fully when the proceedings for bankruptcy are going on. If you refuse the creditors claim, then you have to reach a settlement prior to the bankruptcy appeal or once the bankruptcy petition is filed, the settlement is very difficult.


Disadvantages of bankruptcy:


* You lose control on your assets.


* Creditors will make it hard for you to re establish credit.


* You will be charged higher interest rates.


* The bankruptcy will remain on your credit report for up to ten years


* You will have a damaged credit rating


Advantages of bankruptcy:


* Release you from overpowering debts so that you can make a new start subject to some limitations.


* Bankruptcy gives peace of mind to the person who is involved and discharge may be one year and in few cases less.


* Bankruptcy allows full investigation of the debtors affairs that are also in debtors interest.


* With few exceptions (such as those ordered in a Chapter 13 plan), creditors have no claim on a debtor's future income or assets. In general, wages, earnings and most property acquired after bankruptcy are not subject to claims of pre-bankruptcy creditors.

J Delgado is an expert in helping individuals restore there credit. To find out more about having foreclosures, bankruptcies, late payments and other derogatory items removed from your credit report contact him at creditexpert@scrubyourcredit.com or at: http://www.scrubyourcredit.com

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Information You Must Know Before Filing Bankruptcy

February 13, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Some people have a misconception when it comes to Bankruptcy. They do not have a clear understanding regarding what preparation must occur before filing. Does Bankruptcy mean you still owe debts? What requirements must unfold before filing? Here is a basic guideline regarding what to do before signing any Bankruptcy paperwork.

Provide Thorough Lists of Property and Assets

When filing for Bankruptcy, it is common to wonder what will happen to your home, cars and businesses during the process. Will the courts take your belongings away? Will the courts obtain control of your accounts and monetary items? The court will do nothing if you provide a thorough list of all property and assets. For the listed items are protected under Bankruptcy law. On the other hand, if you fail to provide a complete list of belongings, the left out items are unprotected and courts may take seize of those items at any moment. Therefore, be meticulous and list everything to ensure law protects the items.

Be Prepared for Your Credit Report to Remain in Shambles

Filing for Bankruptcy does not mend your damaged credit report. Your credit report will continue to exhibit a negative mark. Do not be fooled by myths that claim otherwise. In addition, Bankruptcy shall stay on your credit report for 10 years. Hence, evaluate if Bankruptcy is the right option for you before tinkering with the process.

Fibbing Leads to Case Dismissals

During any court proceedings, if a person is caught cheating, stealing and/or lying then, most likely, the case will result in dismissal. Therefore, why should filing Bankruptcy be any different? Be honest. Do not hide facts or misrepresent yourself. Do not leave out information regardless if the information is seemingly insignificant. For what may be insignificant to you may be pertinent to the courts. Provide the courts with ample information. Consequently, if you have legal representation, be upfront with him/her. The more you give your Bankruptcy attorney, the more prepared he/she shall be while in court.

Do Not Accumulate New Debts

Do not build any new debts while undergoing the process. If you purposely accrue new debts, thinking filing for Bankruptcy will avert from forcing to pay it back, a jail cell will be your next stop. It is illegal to proceed forth thinking in this manner. Thus, do not think about it. It will only get you into legal, and further financial, trouble.

Silence Bill Collectors

As soon as you file for bankruptcy, then creditors, including tax collectors become quiet. They are not permitted to contact you for any purpose and the harassing phone calls and letters stop immediately. The protection is permanent discharged debts. Keep in mind, Bankruptcy does not halt you from enduring criminal or governmental regulatory proceedings.

Bankruptcy Filings are Brutal

It is not an easy, simple process to undergo Bankruptcy filing procedures. There may be court dates to attend, additional information requested by the courts, and legal requirements difficult to comprehend. Your life may be shook up for a while. As a result, do your research and find someone who is a Bankruptcy expert able to handle and manage your case until the end.

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Think Before Filing for Bankruptcy

February 13, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Filing For Bankruptcy after those endless debt issues may seem as the last resort. However, it might be more of a fearful act. Bankruptcy is a hard-nosed procedure with almost permanent impact. The menacing after effects of bankruptcy, which often are not properly assessed before filing for bankruptcy tend to confuse during the process, thus impelling many to cancel the proceedings.

Debt issues are difficult to deal with and even more strenuous are the problems which typically complement the financial agonies; however, Filing for bankruptcy is not the very perfect answer to curb miseries. Instead, Filing for bankruptcy might just aggravate the issue, leading to even greater, unmanageable troubles. Therefore, before beginning with the official bankruptcy Filing act, read on to find all about bankruptcy and thus refrain from the insidious obligations .

Bankruptcy - The Concept

In the most positive terms, bankruptcy is a legal proceeding that allows individuals and companies to start over again without managing their debt obligations. When large corporations opt for bankruptcy, the leading media representatives talk about it, while when average earning people apply for one, they are an addition to the statistical reports. In the UK, both the stated bankruptcy filing announcements are a norm, thus making bankruptcy sound as an very tempting debt solution route. To further entice the sufferers of the debt, bankruptcy promises to cease all financial stress, and suggest a way out with less to pay, thus eliminate all debt issues.

Bankruptcy has a Host of Harmful Consequences

If you are just thinking about filing for bankruptcy, then consider the matter deeply, because there is much more to it than the benefits stated above, Bankruptcy also has a host of disadvantageous consequences. Once an entity begins filing for bankruptcy and thus declares the bankrupt is devoid of assets of value such as a house or other equity. Businesses could be sold, including machinery to repay creditors. Those declared bankrupts may have accommodation issues, with landlords not too delighted to accept them as tenants. Remember, bankruptcy, is a legal procedure, and therefore is recorded by bankruptcy law. Bankruptcy stays in files for years (see enterprise act for updates) and therefore negatively impacts financial transactions until the same time. The image is not very helpful in envisaged career moves as well. Employers too are apprehensive of those with bankruptcy records in their credit files. Of course, seeking and obtaining competitive credit terms can be just a dream after filing for bankruptcy.

Bank current accounts suddenly seem unobtainable. And after all this mess, there are certain debts which even bankruptcy cannot deal with and there are secured creditors, who have every right to their share, even after the bankruptcy has been declared.

Bankruptcy offers a chance to start again, but there may not be many resources to start again.

Think Before Filing for Bankruptcy was written by Mike Kelley. He has written many articles on a wide variety of debt matters. For more information on Bankruptcy you can visit http://www.1st-debtconsolidation.co.uk

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The New Bankruptcy Law: Information you Need to Know Before you File

February 12, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

The new bankruptcy law is in effect, and the climate has drastically

changed for people who are considering bankruptcy. In this article we

will touch on some of the details of the new law, and explain exactly how

these new changes will affect you.

First, let's touch on the new counseling requirements. According to

the new law, you must complete credit counseling with an agency approved

by the United States Trustee's office before you can file for

bankruptcy under either Chapter 13 or Chapter 7. Because this counseling is to

decide whether you need to file for bankruptcy, or if an informal

payment plan would be a better alternative for your situation. The counseling

is mandatory for everyone, even for people who know for certain that a

repayment plan is not what they want.

However, you are required only to join in the counseling; you do not

have to go with any repayment plans the agency recommends. But if you are

given a plan, you will have to present the plan to the court with a

certificate showing that you attended the counseling before you can file

for bankruptcy. Once your bankruptcy case is over, you will have to

attend another counseling session focused on learning personal financial

management skills to complete your bankruptcy and erase your debts.

Another major change that comes with the new law effects many people

who want to file chapter 7 bankruptcy. Under the old law, most people

filing could choose between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13,and most people

chose Chapter 7. Because of the new law, many filers with higher incomes

will be prohibited from using Chapter 7.

The first step in determining whether or not you can file for Chapter 7

is to compare your current monthly income to the median income for a

family of your size in the state you live in. In the context of the new

law, your current monthly income is not your income at the time you

file, but your average income over the last six months before you file.

Once you have determined your income, measure it against the median

income in your state. If your income is equal to or less than the median,

you can file for Chapter 7. If it is more than the median, you must

pass a requirement of the new law called the means test. The means test

requires you to determine your amount of "disposable income" by

subtracting different variables from your current monthly income.

If your current monthly income after subtracting these amounts is

under $100, you pass the means test, and will be able to file for Chapter

7. If you income is more than $166.66, you will be prohibited from

using Chapter 7. Those in the middle of these incomes will be able to file

for chapter 7, but will be required to still pay a percentage of their

debt.

Yet another important change caused by the new law is that lawyers may

be harder to find, and possibly more expensive. The new law has added

many complex requirements to the process of filing for bankruptcy that

will make it more time consuming for lawyers to represent their clients

in bankruptcy cases. The end result being that attorney fees for

representation will increase. Also, the amount of time that lawyers must put

into the new regulations has increased and it is likely that it may be

harder to find a lawyer that solely specialized in bankruptcy in the

future. Many experts are predicting that the stress of these new

requirements may drive some bankruptcy lawyers out of the field completely.

Now that you know many of the changes the new bankruptcy laws hold for

your situation, be aware and file with care.


Liz Roberts is a loan consultant with NewHorizon Finance and has been providing consumers and business owners with financing since 1989. Join our mailing list for FREE tips on building and repairing your credit . We also have a list of recommended bad credit credit cards

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