A lot of people wonder about how long a Chapter 7 case takes, so here is a recent case history. Case filed on June 30, 2022. The Court Trustee conducted the Meeting of Creditors on August 22, 2022. No creditors appeared and the Trustee asked questions which took about 10 minutes. The meeting was conducted by telephone, given that all … Read More
Do You Need to File Bankruptcy? 5 Signs to Consider
Whether you should file bankruptcy is a important question, but here are some of the warning signs that you should consider. First, remember that there are no minimum debt amounts required to file a case. There are maximum debt limits in Chapter 13 cases, but I don’t often find folks in those situations. Here are some of the warning signs … Read More
Keeping Your Car in a Bankruptcy Case
It’s the rare American who doesn’t own a car. Nearly all of us need them daily to get to and from work or school. So, it shouldn’t surprise you that people going through bankruptcy must have a car as well. Fortunately, for folks who own older vehicles, it’s usually easy to protect those cars by using the bankruptcy exemption laws. … Read More
Drowning in Debt? Bankruptcy May Be Your Best Option
A lot of folks contact my office to discuss their IRS tax problems, and then once we talk, I find out that they have other financial problems as well Simply put, not every person is a good candidate for a bankruptcy case. If you have a lot of home equity for example, then you might not be a good candidate. … Read More
IRS Tax Bankruptcy–will you protect your assets?
The majority of bankruptcy filers can use the laws to protect their assets from the Court and from the IRS and other creditors. But before we talk about protecting assets, let’s review the laws about eliminating IRS income tax debt through a bankruptcy filing. Here are the requirements (1) the taxes have to be at least 3 full years … Read More
Paying the IRS through a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Plan
I’ve written elsewhere on my site about IRS Installment Agreements, which are payment plans to repay the IRS over a period of time (usually 72 months if it is a streamlined agreement). But unfortunately, the IRS continues to impose penalty and interest during the course of the Installment Agreement. What are the alternatives and how is one to reduce the … Read More
Can You Get a Student Loan After Bankruptcy?
Need to get a student loan after a bankruptcy filing? For those considering a bankruptcy case filing, this is a big question. Will they be eligible to get a student loan after filing for bankruptcy? The answer is: it all depends on what you’re looking for. Here’s what you should consider. Federal Student Loans For students applying for college, … Read More
Bank of America is Hated–It’s Official!
I just finished reading this article from Mother Jones which outlines the 10 most hated banks in America, according to complaints received by the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau from 2011 to 2014. Ah ha, the winner is Bank of America. And Bank of America is hated by a good distance, by the way, with Wells Fargo, Chase and Citibank … Read More
3 Questions to Ask if You’re Filing a Bankruptcy Case
There are 3 questions to ask if you’re thinking about filing a bankruptcy case. Preferential Payments and Transfers First, is your case going to be approved by the Court? As an attorney, I want to know if clients have engaged in any questionable practices in the recent past. Specifically, have they sold or transferred any assets to “insiders” (definition: family … Read More
Getting a Mortgage After Bankruptcy Discharge–One Person’s Story
A recent client just called me today about her efforts to get a new mortgage after her bankruptcy discharge was granted. She and her husband had about $35,000 in credit card debt that they wiped out with a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing. They filed their case in April 2011 and their case was approved, and they received their discharge … Read More