Articles from Oregon Bankruptcy Lawyer | Portland, Salem, and Vancouver, Wa

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The Bankruptcy Means Test and VA Disability

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 03/16/2015 - 02:55

I am officially annoyed this afternoon. Trying to run my client’s household income numbers through the Means Test and seeing him fail due to the cumulative amount of both his household income and military disability. I am annoyed because if he were receiving plain old social security disability, he would pass the means test with flying colors and we would be filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy for him tomorrow afternoon in the Portland, Oregon Bankruptcy Court. Why count one and not the other? Shouldn’t the vets do better than the civilians?

Good News for Oregon Student Loan Debtors

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 02/28/2015 - 18:00

Oregon student loan debtors breathed a sigh of relief this week when the Department of Education announced that it was finally firing five debt collection agencies that had been giving inaccurate information to student borrowers. I say finally firing these agencies because the department had been under fire for years for its partnership with these agencies and its insistence on paying them roughly a billion a year to harass student loan borrowers.

Peter McKittrick Appointed Judge of U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Oregon

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 12/19/2014 - 21:36

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has appointed of Portland attorney Peter C. McKittrick as a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Oregon. Mr. McKittrick will fill a vacancy left in the wake the retirement of Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth L. Perris.

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Hardship Discharge in Oregon

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 12/17/2014 - 04:19

Often Oregon debtors in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy will hit a rough spot during their case and  request a hardship discharge rather than seek conversion to Chapter 7.  Conversion and hardship discharge are not one in the same. There are specific requirements that must be met before you can even be considered for a hardship discharge. The standards for conversion are often much easier to meet.

Medical Bankruptcy in Oregon

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 12/06/2014 - 18:51

I often get questions from Oregon consumers about medical bankruptcy but there is no such thing. I think the myth that is out there is that there is some sort of specialized bankruptcy that enables the filer to get rid of medical bills only while keeping the credit cards going.

Oregon Home Purchase After Bankruptcy Filing

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 11/30/2014 - 17:52

A personal bankruptcy does not have to bar an Oregon consumer from home purchase for very long.  Oregon bankruptcy filers  that went through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy must wait four years from the date of discharge before applying for a conventional loan.

How Long Can I Stay in the House After Surrendering It in My Oregon Chapter 7 Bankruptcy?

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 11/29/2014 - 23:22

Oregon Debtors are often certain that they want to give up their houses in their upcoming Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, but no one likes a mystery when it comes to figuring out how much time they have in the property. The reality is that you will know exactly when you will have to leave, months before the due date for doing so comes up.

Oregon Chapter 13 Bankruptcy for Homeowners New and Improved

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 10/26/2014 - 00:15

The Oregon Bankruptcy Court’s recent ruling in In Re Watt requires a mortgage holder to accept title to a home surrendered in chapter 13 bankruptcy. Prior to In Re Watt, a borrower could surrender a home in Chapter 13 bankruptcy but wait for months, if not years, on end while the mortgage lender took its time foreclosing on the property. This was a particularly cruel fate for Oregon debtors with ongoing HOA obligations, but really a hardship for just about any Oregon homeowner/Chapter 13 debtor hoping to walk away from a property and really start over.

Bankruptcy and Credit Score

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 10/12/2014 - 19:16

Oregon bankruptcy filers with bottom of the barrel credit scores might find that the quickest and easiest way to increase their credit scores in the wake of a bankruptcy filing is to become an authorized user on a family member’s credit card. As an authorized user, you get the benefits of someone else’s credit but with no legal requirement to pay the actual bills. What’s better than that?

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is Misunderstood

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 10/11/2014 - 17:42

When  I meet with Oregon debtors for the first time in our Portland and Salem offices, I cannot help but notice that many of them are concerned that they will not qualify for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. For many of them, the worry is that they will be forced to pay back all their creditors. They have been told somewhere along the way that Chapter 13 is simply a reorganization of all their debt; that Chapter 13 is simply a mechanism for paying back all their creditors. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth.

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