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If you’re struggling from debts that arose from gambling, chapter 7 very well may be your answer. There has been an increase over the last 25 years in the state of Illinois with gambling institutions. These so-called boats have led many addicted people to lose their life savings, their families, their jobs, and their dignity+ Read MoreThe post Gambling Debts And Bankruptcy appeared first on David M. Siegel.
Bankruptcy's Financial Management Course with Dave Ramsey
I have listened to the Dave Ramsey Show for many years. Dave is all about helping people get of debt. Plain and simple. He wants people to be more excited about having paid off their house mortgage than having a financed BMW car in the driveway. If you have read any of Dave Ramsey’s books or listen to his radio show you know that he is not only informative but entertaining.
Four years ago, while at the National Consumer Bankruptcy Association's annual meeting, I learned that Dave offered one of the two required classes all bankruptcy filers must take. Having already been a fan, I signed up my office to be a registered attorney. I have encouraged all my clients to take this great Debtor Education class. This class is the class my bankruptcy clients take after filing bankruptcy. What a great way to start over with an effective financial plan!
I have dozens and dozens of my clients Dave's class. I have received a lot of positive feedback for this course.
In addition to the online class, Dave Ramsey's staff provides my office with copies of his "Starting Over-Post Bankruptcy Survival Guide" to give to each of my clients.
I also direct my clients to Dave's website. From there, you can find his Financial Peace University Class, online budget tools, his books and be able to stream his radio show.
Attorney Ken Jorgensen is located in Clovis, California. He handles personal, property and business disputes, including bankruptcy and eviction cases in California. You can find out more about Ken on Facebook, or at his websites, www.fresnolawgroup.com and www.fresnobankruptcylawgroup.com. He can be reached at [email protected] or by telephone at 1-559-324-1882.
Student loans are generally an unsecured debt that is non-dischargeable in a bankruptcy case. This means that under chapter 7 fresh start bankruptcy, a student loan must be listed however it is not eliminated. There are some circumstances where a student loan may be discharged however that involves an extreme hardship case and I’ve never+ Read MoreThe post Is There Any Bankruptcy Help For Student Loans? appeared first on David M. Siegel.
I’ve been a Seattle bankruptcy lawyer for almost six years now, and it’s time for a change. It won’t be a little change, it’s going to be a big change. How big? Well my wife and I are moving to Louisville, KY. It’s where she’s from. When we get to Louisville, I won’t practice law. The law practice will be 95% closed by June 1 and 100% closed by July 20.
Why am I going to stop practicing law, considering that I did three years of law school, clerked for a federal judge, and ran my own practice? The short answer is that all lawyer jokes are true.
So what am I going to do instead? Web developer, but only because professional basketball player is out of reach. I’m barely six feet. My ball handling skills are weak at best, and I’ve got a torn meniscus. Also, the best thing I’ve gotten from running my own law practice is an undiscovered love of all things web technology related.
Here’s the deal. When I started this practice, I was broke, broke, broke. I looked around for a web developer. I paid way too much money for a below average WordPress site. It didn’t do any of the things I wanted it to do. It barely ranked on Google. I was stuck.
Being a resourceful guy and really needing to keep my law practice afloat, I taught myself WordPress. I built a site that was better than the one I had paid for. Then I taught myself SEO. After a few months, Google started being good to me, and my practice took off.
I still maintained my site. In fact, my wife (the smart one in this marriage) pointed out that I talked about my website even more than I talked about how much I disliked practicing law.
Then I made one big mistake. About a year ago, my practice was insanely busy. My site was getting to be a pain to manage. This time I thought, “Gee, I’ve got the money to hire a really bang up web designer.” So I did. You do not get what you pay for. Instead you spend three months asking your web developer why the site doesn’t work. You actually tell your web developer a few things that he should have known. Then your web developer launches your new site for you, without mentioning that he’d completely changed the internal link structure. The web developer will not be spoken of again.
The site you see today was the site that I paid for. I made several changes. I spent an entire afternoon doing 301 redirects to mitigate the SEO damage from the completely new – and unasked for – internal link structure. That was it. I decided never again. This time I meant it.
I haven’t redone the site from the ground up, because it’s my law practice’s site and isn’t meant to be a portfolio. Also, I’m closing the practice, moving across the country, taking care of a 9 month old, teaching myself to code, and scrounging up the time to hang out with my wife.
After all that, I realized something. I love messing around with websites. I’ve been messing around with WordPress sites for years. So I decided to do something about it. By then, I knew enough HTML/CSS to get myself into and then out of trouble. I know a smidgen of PHP. So I decided to embark on a formal self study of coding. I made it through HTML and CSS in a couple of weeks, while working full time and taking care of my 9 month old daughter. Sleep is for the weak. Now I’m working on JavaScript. Once that’s done, it’s on to PHP.
Right now, at this very moment, I’m looking for opportunities to get my foot into the web development world. I’m looking for opportunities to learn new skills, polish the skills that I already have, build a portfolio of work, and find a new gig where I can bang on computers all day.
The post Big Changes For This Bankruptcy Lawyer appeared first on Bankruptcy Attorney Seattle and Kent.
Atty. Jordan E. Bublick, 1221 Brickell Avenue, 9th Fl., Miami, Florida .jpg "exemption property held tenancy entireties")
In a bankruptcy case filed in Florida, property held under the Florida law of tenants by the entireties - between a husband and wife - is usually considered as exempt from the bankruptcy estate to the extent of the claims of creditors against only one of the two spouses.
Pursuant to 11 U.S.C. section 522(b)(3)(B), an individual is allowed to exempt from the bankruptcy estate "...any interest in property in which the debtor had, immediately before the commencement of the case, an interest as a tenant by the entirety...to the extent that such interest...is exempt from process under applicable nonbankruptcy law. 11 U.S.C. section 522(b)(3)(B).
Six Characteristics of Tenants by Entireties Property
In a recent case before a Florida bankruptcy court, the court reviewed that the six characteristics of property held tenants by the entireties in Florida. These six characteristics are:
- unity of possession
- unity of interest
- unity of title
- unity of time
- survivorship
- unity of marriage
In this case, the Florida bankruptcy court did not have a problem in finding exempt certain personal acquired as Florida residents under the Florida law of tenancy by the entireties.
New Jersey Property
But the question was presented to the Court as to the tenants by the entireties exemption of certain property obtained by a debtor while they were living in New Jersey and before the bankruptcy case was transferred from New Jersey to the Florida bankruptcy court. .jpg "Tenants by Entireties Exemption")
The court found that the status of property as tenants by the entireties created under New Jersey tenants by the entireties law, must be determined under New Jersey law which was the state in which the property was acquired. The court noted New Jersey statutes does provide for the holding of personal property as tenants by the entireties if certain requirements are met per New Jersey Statutes section 46.3-17.2. In this instance, the bankruptcy court found that debtor did not meet the statutory requirements as to the household goods as the debtor did not produce a written instrument as evidence. In any event, the court apparently noted that in New Jersey, property owned as tenants by the entirety is not exempt from the claims of an individual's sole (non-joint) creditors as is the case in Florida.
(305) 891-4055 - Jordan E. Bublick is a Miami Bankruptcy Lawyer with over 25 years of experience in filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankrkuptcy Cases and Mortgage Modifications
Atty. Jordan E. Bublick, 1221 Brickell Avenue, 9th Fl., Miami, Florida
In a bankruptcy case filed in Florida, property held under the Florida law of tenants by the entireties - between a husband and wife - is usually considered as exempt from the bankruptcy estate to the extent of the claims of creditors against only one of the two spouses.
Pursuant to 11 U.S.C. section 522(b)(3)(B), an individual is allowed to exempt from the bankruptcy estate "...any interest in property in which the debtor had, immediately before the commencement of the case, an interest as a tenant by the entirety...to the extent that such interest...is exempt from process under applicable nonbankruptcy law. 11 U.S.C. section 522(b)(3)(B).
Six Characteristics of Tenants by Entireties Property
In a recent case before a Florida bankruptcy court, the court reviewed that the six characteristics of property held tenants by the entireties in Florida. These six characteristics are:
- unity of possession
- unity of interest
- unity of title
- unity of time
- survivorship
- unity of marriage
In this case, the Florida bankruptcy court did not have a problem in finding exempt certain personal acquired as Florida residents under the Florida law of tenancy by the entireties.
New Jersey Property
But the question was presented to the Court as to the tenants by the entireties exemption of certain property obtained by a debtor while they were living in New Jersey and before the bankruptcy case was transferred from New Jersey to the Florida bankruptcy court. The court found that the status of property as tenants by the entireties created under New Jersey tenants by the entireties law, must be determined under New Jersey law which was the state in which the property was acquired. The court noted New Jersey statutes does provide for the holding of personal property as tenants by the entireties if certain requirements are met per New Jersey Statutes section 46.3-17.2. In this instance, the bankruptcy court found that debtor did not meet the statutory requirements as to the household goods as the debtor did not produce a written instrument as evidence. In any event, the court apparently noted that in New Jersey, property owned as tenants by the entirety is not exempt from the claims of an individual's sole (non-joint) creditors as is the case in Florida.
Jordan E. Bublick is a Miami Bankruptcy Lawyer with over 25 years of experience in filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Cases and Mortgage Modifications (305) 891-4055
For many of our Oregon and Washington clients, the debt collection process is a bit of a mystery. What does a charge off mean? How are these collection companies getting paid? Is that a law firm or a company that is after me now? The information below might help you figure that out. More that anything I want to give you a feel for where you are in the debt collection process. Keep in mind that if you fall anywhere in the debt collection process continuum, it is probably time to seriously consider bankruptcy and get out of the debt collection process all together.
The debt collection process starts when a company issuing credit to a Washington or Oregon consumer determines that the account is delinquent and that the consumer must be contacted about the debt. In an effort to obtain payment, many creditors have their own in-house collectors contact you via telephone calls, collection letters (often referred to as “dunning letters” or “dunning notices”) or email.
If in-house collectors are not successful in collecting from you during a limited period (usually between six months and a year), the creditor will charge off your account and place it with a third-party collector – either a contingency collection agency or a law firm specializing in collections.
If the creditor places your account with a contingency agency, the creditor and agency will agree to a specific period (anywhere from several weeks to several years) for the agency to hold the collection account. If the contingency agency is successful in collecting your debt, it will be paid a portion of the amount collected. Thirty percent is the current industry standard.
If the account is placed with a collection law firm, the firm may file suit against the consumer to collect. Collection law firms generally are paid either on an hourly basis or on a contingent fee basis. Almost all of these firms engage in the same collection practices as contingency agencies, such as placing telephone calls and sending collection letters. If a collection law firm is successful in collecting, it generally is paid a portion of the amount collected. Rather than being paid contingency fees or hourly fees, some collection law firms also purchase debts and derive revenue from collections through judicial or non-judicial processes.
If a creditor sells an account to a debt buyer, the account usually is sold as part of a large portfolio. Once a debt buyer has acquired a portfolio, it does one of the following: (1) retains the entire portfolio and collects on it; (2) retains and collects on part of the portfolio and resells the remaining accounts; or (3) resells the entire portfolio. To the extent that a debt buyer retains all or part of a portfolio, it may collect using its own collectors or place an account with a contingency agency or collection law firm.
Collection accounts are purchased and resold by a number of different debt buyers over a period of years before all collection efforts finally cease. Debt buyers generally pay 5% or less of the amount owed on delinquent accounts they purchase. The amount they pay varies based on a number of factors, key among them being the age of the debt and the number of collectors who have already attempted to collect it. The longer an account has been delinquent and the greater the number of collectors who have already attempted to collect on it, the less likely it is that the consumer will pay the debt. As the likelihood of payment drops, so does the amount debt buyers are willing to pay for the debt. Ultimately, the process of selling and collecting on an account continues until either the debt is paid or the cost of collecting on the debt exceeds its expected value.
If you have any questions about the debt collection continuum and what do do about it, please call me or set an appointment at either our Portland or Salem Law Office. I look forward to hearing from you.
The original post is titled Oregon and Washington Debt Collection Process , and it came from Portland Bankruptcy Attorney | Northwest Debt Relief .
.jpg "Florida Homestead Exemption in Three Different Contexts")
The concept of a Florida "homestead" arises in three different contexts under Florida law:
- exemption from taxation per Art. VII, Section 6, Fla. Constit.
- exemption from forced sale before and at death per Art. X, Section 4(a)-(b), Fla. Const. and
- Restrictions on devise and alienation, Art. X, Section 4(c), Fla. Const.
It should be noted that the definition of homestead property for Article VII, section 6 purposes (taxation) is not the same as Article X, section 4 (forced sale and devise and alienation).
Art. X, Section 4 Homesteads
Neither the Florida Legislature nor the Florida Constitution provide a definition of what is homestead property for purposes of Art. X, Section 4 (a)(forced sale and devise and alienation). Florida courts hold that the following requirements must be satisfied for property to be determined as homestead property:
- the property must be owned by a "natural person"
- the person claiming the exemption must be a Florida resident who establishes that he intends to make the real property his permanent residence
- the person claiming the exemption must establish that he is the owner of the property and
- the property claimed as the homestead must satisfy the size and contiguity requirements of the constitution.
Florida courts also have held that the Florida Constitution does not limit the types of estates that are eligible for homestead status. Therefore, the exemption may generally attach to any estate in land whether it is a freehold or lesser estate. A life estate has been expressly found to be among the property interests eligible for homestead status. Florida court have held that real property held in trust can be impressed with the character of homestead, including revocable and irrevocable trusts.
History of the Constitutional Homestead
A provision protecting homestead property first appeared in the Florida Constitution of 1868. Art. IX, Section 1, Fla. Const. (1868). Historical materials indicate that it was originally inspired by a desperate attempt by Floridians to repel the invasions of "Yankee carpetbaggers" at the end of the Civil War. The limitation on devise and alienation first appeared in the 1885 Constitution. Art. IX, Section 1-3, Fla. Const. (1868).(305) 891-4055 - Jordan E. Bublick is a Miami Bankruptcy Lawyer with over 25 years of experience in filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankrkuptcy Cases and Mortgage Modifications
The concept of a Florida "homestead" arises in three different contexts under Florida law:
- exemption from taxation per Art. VII, Section 6, Fla. Constit.
- exemption from forced sale before and at death per Art. X, Section 4(a)-(b), Fla. Const. and
- Restrictions on devise and alienation, Art. X, Section 4(c), Fla. Const.
It should be noted that the definition of homestead property for Article VII, section 6 purposes (taxation) is not the same as Article X, section 4 (forced sale and devise and alienation).
Art. X, Section 4 Homesteads
Neither the Florida Legislature nor the Florida Constitution provide a definition of what is homestead property for purposes of Art. X, Section 4 (a)(forced sale and devise and alienation). Florida courts hold that the following requirements must be satisfied for property to be determined as homestead property:
- the property must be owned by a "natural person"
- the person claiming the exemption must be a Florida resident who establishes that he intends to make the real property his permanent residence
- the person claiming the exemption must establish that he is the owner of the property and
- the property claimed as the homestead must satisfy the size and contiguity requirements of the constitution.
Florida courts also have held that the Florida Constitution does not limit the types of estates that are eligible for homestead status. Therefore, the exemption may generally attach to any estate in land whether it is a freehold or lesser estate. A life estate has been expressly found to be among the property interests eligible for homestead status. Florida court have held that real property held in trust can be impressed with the character of homestead, including revocable and irrevocable trusts.Jordan E. Bublick is a Miami Bankruptcy Lawyer with over 25 years of experience in filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Cases and Mortgage Modifications (305) 891-4055
When you file Chapter 7 bankruptcy, not all of your debts may be eliminated. For example, student loans, recent taxes, parking tickets, child support and debts incurred through fraud are not eliminated. The video below talks about how some people will run up the balance on a credit card in anticipation of filing Chapter 7+ Read MoreThe post What Debts Are Typically Non-Dischargeable? appeared first on David M. Siegel.
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