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When facing debt problems, dispel uncertainty to get a better solution.
We love certainty in our lives. That’s why we drive the same route to work each morning, set our alarm clocks for the same time, and eat a narrow range of familiar foods.
Certainty is comfortable, after all. It allows us to make decisions and know the outcome. That, in turn, allows us to focus our efforts accordingly.
When we’re uncertain, we get scared. What’s going to happen if I venture into the unknown, take an unfamiliar road or let the alarm clock go tomorrow?
The unknown makes us scared of not being in control.
So we take to the Internet, asking “what if” questions for hours on end. We ask friends, co-workers, and even total strangers for their opinions.
By the end of the question-and-answer session we end up more befuddled than ever before. So here’s how to solve the problem.
Get The Big Picture
Some of my work involves helping people through bankruptcy so they can get out of debt. If a client’s got student loan debt, I use other laws.
More often, I find myself answering questions that involve a client’s credit score or a particularly difficult creditor.
My job, then, involves helping my clients focus on the real problem rather than the symptoms.
If you’ve got $50,000 in overdue credit card debt, you’ve got a particular problem involving money going out and coming in.
But if you’re 6 months behind on your mortgage and under water on your home, your problem is slightly different because it involves one of impending homelessness rather than simply cash flow.
Figure out the problem first. Then you can move onto the next step.
Understand Your “Happy Ending”
Think about what you want to accomplish in solving your problem.
Do you want to be in a position to get rid of your credit card debts in six months, start contributing to your pension plan, and save enough for a downpayment on a new condo within a year? Perhaps a bankruptcy filing is the quick-and-easy way to accomplish that goal.
Are you looking to catch up on your mortgage? You can look to loan modification, refinancing, or even a bankruptcy to help there.
Have one or two credit card debts that you want to knock out so you can get on with your life? There are things you can do in that situation, too.
So long as you know where you want to go, you can move onto the third step.
Get Curious About Solutions
Here in Los Angeles, it seems as if everyone’s pushing their own solutions down your throat. There’s a sign for a mortgage modification place on every block, bankruptcy paralegals hawking their wares, and lawyers for every need.
If you know your problem, however, you need to know which solutions are inappropriate. Mortgage modification is of no use if you’ve got no problem paying the mortgage and have equity, for example. Credit repair doesn’t many sense if you’re behind on your bills.
Here’s where your friends and relatives become less useful.
You want to dissect the pros and cons of each solution to weigh them out. Know the consequences of each decision, being sure to talk with someone who knows what they’re talking about.
For example, if you’ve got a debt problem and want to learn about bankruptcy then you call me.
But if you want to talk about refinancing, I’m not the right person for you.
Jump
You know your problem.
You know what you want to achieve.
You know which solutions are available, and the consequences of each one.
You’ve got the tools you need, and you’ve done your homework.
You can sit around and ponder your belly-button for the next six months as things get worse (they seldom get better by inaction, after all) or you can pick a solution and run with it.
It’s time to trust your instincts.
Friends and family members all want you to choose their favored solution, and they’ve got strong opinions on why you should do as they say. But you’ve done the legwork. You know what you need to do.
Time to move.
The Road Gets Easier
You’ve chosen a path to getting out of debt based on research as well as your own needs. You know what’s going to happen, and how it’s going to play out.
Sure, there may be hard work ahead. If you’re filing for bankruptcy there are court documents and hearings to attend. For student loan issues you’ve got wind through administrative hassles.
That’s the sort of thing my clients turn to me to help out with – making the hard work a bit easier. Hopefully, your lawyer does the same for you.
But one thing’s for sure: if you follow this simple (not easy, but simple) recipe you’ll get over the fear and uncertainty that comes with looking for a solution to your problem.
Image courtesy of Mathieu Struck
How To Get Over Uncertainty And Solve Your Debt Problems was originally published on Consumer Help Central. If you're seeing this message on another site, it has been stolen and is being used without permission. That's illegal, a violation of copyright, and just plain awful.
Chicago area drivers who tried to avoid paying impound fees for their vehicles allegedly participated in a bazaar scheme that included filing false bankruptcy petitions. Local and state investigators found a significant number of “pro-se” bankruptcy filings (individuals who filed without an attorney) after the U.S. Trustee’s Office identified over 1,000 filings were completed. Most [...]
For many Oregon and Washington families Chapter 13 Bankruptcy represents an opportunity to finally resolve past due tax obligations. The opportunity eliminate older tax debt altogether and pay back the remaining balance at zero percent interest over a three to five year period with no penalties and often at the expense of other creditors is a fine thing indeed. But you have to get the returns filed.
Ultimately within a couple months of filing, you may have to show that your federal and state returns have been filed for the last four years before your Chapter 13 Plan is approved. Moreover, the Trustee must receive your most recent filed tax returns at least seven days before your 341 hearing.
Perhaps the most tax related requirement that you must meet during the course of your Chapter 13 case is that you must remain current on your tax filings during the entire life of your Chapter 13 case. Every year you will need to send on copies of your returns to your Bankruptcy attorney so that they can be reviewed, redacted and sent on to the Trustee. Failure to meet this requirement may quickly result in the Trustee filing a motion to dismiss your case.
The original post is titled Tax Requirements and Advantages in Chapter 13 Bankruptcy , and it came from Oregon Bankruptcy Lawyer | Portland, Salem, and Vancouver, Wa .
The ending of a marriage requires you to address all of the debts that you acquired during your marriage. Even if you were able to handle your debts during the marriage, you might not be able to handle them after a divorce. This is because of economies of scale; basically, it’s cheaper for two people to live together than it is for them to live separately. This means that financial planning must be part of your divorce planning.
One question is whether you should file bankruptcy; and then, whether it makes more sense to file bankruptcy before your divorce or after your divorce. There is no right answer. Here are some factors to consider if you want to file bankruptcy before your divorce.
- It’s Cheaper To File Bankruptcy Together: A married couple can file jointly; and they can pay a single filing fee and a single attorneys’ fee. If you file bankruptcy after the divorce, you will pay twice as much because you are paying for two separate bankruptcy cases.
- You Don’t Have To File Bankruptcy Together: Even if you are not divorced yet, you can still file bankruptcy and still reap many of the benefits of a getting a divorce after a bankruptcy is complete. It may be to your advantage to file bankruptcy before the divorce is complete, even if your spouse does not file with you.
- It Will Simplify Your Divorce: Washington State is a community property state. This means that all property acquired during a marriage and all debts acquired during a marriage are share equally between the spouses. The Divorce Petition requires you to divide the community debts. If you file bankruptcy before the divorce, then the division of debts can be handled with ease. This will save you time and attorneys’ fees in the divorce.
- It Will Simplify the Division of Community Property: I have seen many Divorce Decrees that are extremely complicated because the community property division is full of offsets for debt. By simply getting rid of the debt ahead of time, you can simplify the community property division. This will save you time and attorneys’ fees in the divorce.
- It Will Make It Easier To Find A Family Lawyer: If you have lots of debt that you have to pay each month, it will be harder to pay for your divorce lawyers. Also, if you file bankruptcy before getting a divorce, your family lawyer will not be worried that you’ll file bankruptcy on their attorneys’’ fees. This makes it easier to find a family lawyer and pay for that family lawyer.
- It Will Make The Divorce Less Stressful: Divorce is stressful enough, without having to worry about whether bills are being paid. It is easy for a credit card bill or a medical bill to slip through the cracks during a divorce. Taking care of your debt before you get divorced means you don’t have to worry about your creditors.
- You Will Rebuild Your Credit Sooner: Divorce tends to hurt people’s credit scores. This is because it is easy for a bill to slip through the cracks and go to collections or it is easy to fall behind on bills because it is more expensive to live as a single person than as a married couple. What many people do is get divorced, suffer through several months or years of just scraping by, and then file bankruptcy. Then they have to wait for their credit score to rebound from the bankruptcy. The sooner you file bankruptcy, the sooner your credit score will start to rebound.
If you want to file bankruptcy first, and then get a divorce there are a couple of requirements:
- You Have To Sign A Conflict Waiver: You need to inform your attorney that you are planning on getting a divorce so that your attorney can prepare a conflict waiver for you. A conflict waiver is required so that both of you understand what happens if you can’t agree on something during the bankruptcy or if you want to keep information from your spouse.
- You Need To Be Able To Be Able To Work Together: Bankruptcy is a collaborative process. You will need to be able to communicate and work together to prepare the bankruptcy questionnaire, meet with your bankruptcy attorney, and attend the 341 meeting of creditors.
- If You Don’t Think That You Can Work Together: Even if you cannot work together or if there is a major conflict of interest, it is still possible to file bankruptcy before you get divorced. You will just need to file bankruptcy on your own.
If your marriage is ending and you have more debt than you can manage, it may make sense for you to file bankruptcy before you get divorced. Waiting to do your divorce after the bankruptcy process is complete can greatly simplify the process, reduce the stress, and reduce the costs of a divorce.s
For many consumers in both Oregon and Washington, an upcoming eviction often represents the last straw in coping with creditors prior to filing bankruptcy. Thankfully a bankruptcy filing will stop a residential eviction for non-payment of rent in its tracks
If the landlord does not already have a judgment against a tenant before the bankruptcy filing, and the landlord wants to either initiate or continue eviction proceedings, he is barred from doing so by the imposition of the automatic stay. The landlord may, however, file a motion for relief from automatic stay to either initiate or continue an eviction. Washington and Oregon Bankruptcy Courts often grant these requests.
If you are on the cusp of getting evicted from your home or you are slated to appear in court on an eviction matter, please feel free to contact the Northwest Debt Relief Law Firm so that we can go over your options.
The original post is titled Bankruptcy Relief For Eviction in Oregon and Washington , and it came from Oregon Bankruptcy Lawyer | Portland, Salem, and Vancouver, Wa .
Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a court-approved repayment plan based on the debtor’s ability to repay. While the plan is not for everyone, it offers different benefits that debtors may find useful depending on their personal situation. While the plan can last anywhere from three to five years, this aspect alone is enough to discourage debtors [...]
You will not go to jail for failure to pay a bill. There simply is no debtors’ prison anymore and you don’t have to be in fear that you’re going to go to jail if you don’t pay your bills. However, you must appear in court if you are notified to appear either in state or federal court. If someone winds up getting in trouble with the court, it’s going to be for contempt of court for failing to appear.
Here’s how it works in Illinois: once you are served with a summons and you do not appear, there is going to be a judgment entered against you. Approximately 30 days after the judgment is entered, the creditor can bring what’s known as post collection procedures. Those involve a Citation to Discover Assets whereby you have to come into court with particular documentation and answer questions under oath to the creditor explaining where you work, what you have in terms of bank accounts, what you have in terms of property.
If you fail to show up for the Citation to Discover Assets, there will be a second court date called a Rule to Show Cause. The Rule to Show Cause is to explain to the court why you should not be held in contempt for failure to appear before the court pursuant to the court’s order. If you miss both the Citation to Discover Assets and the Rule to Show Cause court dates, then a Writ of Body Attachment can be issued against you. It is from that order that you can be picked up for contempt of court and temporarily jail.
So you don’t go to jail for paying your bills. You go to jail for contempt of court for not appearing before the court. You want to make sure that you appear in court and if you have any questions, contact your attorney whether or not you need to appear for future court dates after your bankruptcy cases filed.
The minute you hire a law firm, this is even before your case is filed; but the minute you hire a law firm and retain an attorney, you have the ability to refer your creditors to that attorney. Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, once a creditor is made aware that you are filing for bankruptcy or that you have representation to file bankruptcy, they are prohibited from contacting you and they must go through your attorney.
The great thing about this is that the minute that you hire my law firm, you are going to be listed on our computer system and you have the ability at that point to refer creditors to us. So a lot of people don’t answer their phone because they know it’s a bill collector or they don’t open their mail because they know it’s a bill and they just pitch it. Once you hire the law firm, you have the ability to tell creditors on the phone that you are filing for bankruptcy, your attorney is Dave Siegel, this is his number, call him. And you also have the ability to open up a bill and send them a quick note notifying them that you no longer wish to be contacted and under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you have an attorney, David Siegel, who is going to be helping you with your debt. So creditors must stop once they receive notice or once you inform them.
Now, there are going to be some creditors that violate the law and will continue to call and continue to send you letters when you tell them to cease and desist. If that is to happen, you want to make sure that you get the name, address, and information on who you spoke to or if you are receiving something in the mail, you give that to your attorney so that your attorney can send a letter advising the particular creditor that you have been retained and that you no longer wish to be contacted. If creditors continue to harass you, your attorney will be able to bring a motion before the court or file a separate lawsuit under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
Purchasing a home, obtaining a mortgage, financing for a house is definitely available after a bankruptcy cases filed. The typical time period that one has to wait to qualify for a decent mortgage is two years. If you can wait two years, you’re going to have a decent down payment hopefully and you are going to get a decent rate. Now, your rate is not going to be as good as someone who had perfect credit and who never had to file for bankruptcy. However, you can start with a halfway decent rate two years after filing your bankruptcy and then look to refinance a year or two or three down the road as your income increases and as your credit history improves.
The more you do to enhance your credit after a bankruptcy filing will pay dividends for you in terms of lower interest rates in the future. I recommend three trade lines after your bankruptcy cases filed. One trade line could be a vehicle purchase. Another one could be a furniture purchase. And another one could be some sort of line of credit or secured credit card that eventually turns into an unsecured card.
If you can maintain a good credit payment history after your bankruptcy case is filed, then within two years, you will qualify for a decent mortgage. If you struggle with debt after your bankruptcy case is filed, then you’re going to find it difficult to get good offers for credit and it will be difficult for you to qualify for a decent mortgage. So it’s very important, when you get your fresh start on a Chapter 7, you take advantage of that fresh start and you don’t do anything that’s going to harm your credit report. If you have a utility bill, you have to pay it on time. If you have a medical bill, you have to make sure you pay that as well. Make sure that you are making all your timely payments after your bankruptcy case is filed so that no new negative information can go on your credit report after your case is filed. This will improve your ability to get credit in the future, including purchasing a home two years after filing.
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