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Bankruptcy

Consumer Bankruptcy Blog from Legal Helpers

Bankruptcy issues, debt consolidation issues and information on filing for bankruptcy provided and addressed by bankruptcy lawyers.

Post Frequency: 1.9/day

Last Entry: August 06, 2009 at 18:22:25

Mortgage Relief in Bankruptcy?

Posted on November 20, 2008
Back in 2005 when Congress overhauled the bankruptcy laws, one of the provisions under consideration was a provision that would have allowed bankruptcy judges to rewrite residential mortgages based on the current value of the real estate. That provision was dropped from the legislation under intense lobbying...

Bankruptcy Filings Surpass 100,000 in October

Posted on November 20, 2008
It appears the bad economy is hitting consumers hard. The American Bankruptcy Institute reported that bankruptcy filings in October surpassed 100,000. This is the largest number of monthly filings since before the law change in 2005.

Mortgage Relief On The Way?

Posted on February 27, 2008
Senate Bill 2636 (Harry Reid, D, NV), which contains a provision that would allow for the modification of home mortgage loans in bankruptcy, will be up for a vote by the full Senate next week. I urge anyone out there to contact your Senators and urge them to pass this legislation and specifically to keep this [...

House Judiciary Committee Narrowly Passes Mortgage Relief Legislation

Posted on December 12, 2007
This week, the House Judiciary Committee passed legislation sponsored by John Conyers (D-MI) and Steve Chabot (R-OH) that would allow bankruptcy judges to modify some mortgages in chapter 13 bankruptcies. The highlight of the legislation which will now go to the full House for a vote is that chapter 13 would allow the debtor to lower [...

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Foreclosures Rampant

Posted on October 07, 2007
According to RealtyTrac, on online marketplace for foreclosed properties, a total of 925,986 houses were at some point in the foreclosure process during the first six months of 2007. This was a 55% increase compared to the same time period in 2006. That equates to one foreclosure for every 134 households during the first half [...

Credit After Bankruptcy

Posted on September 23, 2007
Recently, an associate professor of law at the University of Iowa, Katherine Porter wrote that “credit solicitations of recent bankruptcy debtors is rampant.” She studied data collected by the Consumer Bankruptcy Project and found that nearly every debtor receives credit offers shortly after bankruptcy...

Bankruptcy Stigma?

Posted on August 17, 2007
In my experience, most of my clients find it a difficult decision to file for bankruptcy. I find that their concerns and fears are not related to the economics of the situation. That part is usually painfully clear. The fears and anxiety about bankruptcy most of the time arise because of personal [...

Big Bad Credit Card Companies?

Posted on August 01, 2007
I read an editorial in today’s New York Times that discussed the failure of federal agencies that are supposed to keep up with deceptive and unfair practices in the banking and credit card industries. As a consequence, many hard-working Americans who pay their bills are mired in debt and in danger of losing whatever [...

Beware Debt Settlement Agencies

Posted on June 22, 2007
I read an article today from amNY.com about a hairdresser in New York who went to a debt referral agency called “Debt Choice.” They put her in touch with an attorney that does debt settlement negotiation. The firm was Seidelman Law Firm and the hairdresser ended up filing for bankruptcy in order to [...

Latest Bankruptcy Statistics

Posted on June 13, 2007
Bankruptcy filings were up 11.5% in May over the previous month, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute relying on statistics published by the National Bankruptcy Research Center. May 2007 saw an increase in filing of approximately 51% over May 2006...

More Foreclosure News

Posted on June 01, 2007
Foreclosure filings across the United States rose 47% in April compared to the year before. The rate is up to 1 out of every 775 households. The housing boom of the 1990’s and early 2000’s caused many people to speculate in the housing market...

Mortgage v. Credit Card Delinquency Rates

Posted on April 28, 2007
I read some recent reports indicating that default rates on mortgages, especially “sub-prime” mortgages have jumped in the face of the slowing housing market. Credit card delinquencies, on the other hand, have not increased, as some had predicted...

What is Redemption in bankruptcy?

Posted on April 06, 2007
Redemption is a process that is sometimes misunderstood. Redemption is the process of paying a lump sum payment to a secured creditor (lienholder) in exchange for the release of the lien. In Chapter 7 bankruptcy, a debtor can use 11 U.S.C. Section 722 to pay only the fair market value for the collateral, [...

Tips to Avoid Common Debt Reduction Mistakes

Posted on March 30, 2007
Here are some helpful tips that could help you avoid making common mistakes while trying to reduce your debt. 1) STAY FOCUSED. Focus on one debt or one type of debt at a time. If you try to reduce all of your debt at once it can be overwhelming and very discouraging...

Bankruptcy and Immigration

Posted on March 15, 2007
Many of our potential clients have not only financial issues affecting their lives, but also immigration issues. It’s not uncommon for a non-citizen to need a bankruptcy case. The first question is whether or not a non-citizen can even file a case...

Congress Investigating Credit Card Practices

Posted on March 08, 2007
I recently read a Consumer Watch report indicating that the chairman of the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee recently was credited with indicating that regulation and legislation are needed to stop abusive credit card practices...

The Foreclosure Solution

Posted on March 02, 2007
I’ve read a lot of articles and listened to a lot of reports in the media about the very high foreclosure rates across the country. It seems a lot of people are behind on mortgage payments and face foreclosure. While this news saddens me as I think about the families that are struggling [...

Cash Advances and Credit Card Usage Prior to Filing

Posted on February 19, 2007
It is never a good idea to continue to use credit when you know you are not in position to repay the debt. In the bankruptcy context, creditors can object to the discharge of recently incurred debt. There are complicated rules about this, but suffice it to say that if you are in [...

Debit Cards Cause Overdrafts

Posted on February 08, 2007
The Center of Responsible Lending recently published a new study called “Debit Card Danger” that revealed most overdrafts are not caused by checks anymore. They are caused by debit card usage. This isn’t surprising as most people don’t make entries into their check registers every time they use their debit card...

What should I do to clear a bankruptcy from my credit report?

Posted on January 20, 2007
The Fair Credit Reporting Act provides that “negative” information can be reported on a credit report for up to 7 years from the date of last activity. There is an exception for bankruptcy cases. They can remain on a credit report for up to 10 years...

Foreclosure Rates Set to Skyrocket

Posted on December 26, 2006
The New York Times news service has reported that 1 out of every 5 subprime loans are likely to go into foreclosure over the next two years. The highest default rates are expected to be in cities in California, New Jersey, Washington, DC, Michigan, and Nevada...

What exactly is the difference between debt settlement and bankruptcy?

Posted on November 13, 2006
The simple answer is that debt settlement is an out-of-court voluntary arrangement between a debtor and creditors. Bankruptcy is a legal proceeding in federal court that can result in an order by a judge discharging liability. A successful bankruptcy filing results in a court order giving the debtor a “discharge” of debt...

Student Loans - Are these funds considered income in bankruptcy?

Posted on October 27, 2006
This question seems to come up a lot in my conversations with people, especially those working and going to school. The concern is that if student loan funds that are deposited into a bank account are counted as income for purposes of qualifying for chapter 7 bankruptcy relief...

Credit Dispute Letters

Posted on October 18, 2006
I get a lot of inquiries from people asking about credit dispute letters. A lot of us are forced to deal with credit report inaccuracies. Sometimes the reports are inaccurate because they don’t reflect a bankruptcy discharge and that the balance is zero, or sometimes the reports mix up names, etc… Whatever the reason, [...

Types of Bankruptcy

Posted on September 29, 2006
I get a lot of inquiries regarding types of bankruptcy and thought I would just lay out the different types of bankruptcy and have a short discussion regarding which type is appropriate in certain situations. Chapter 7 is the type of bankruptcy that makes up a large majority of all bankruptcy cases filed in the United [...

Can A Prospective Employer Refuse to Hire Me Because of a Bankruptcy?

Posted on September 15, 2006
My last blog post discussed whether or not an employer could terminate someone’s employment because of a bankruptcy case. The answer was clearly no. Is the answer the same when it comes to a prospective employer hiring you? If you review 11 U...

Don?t Believe Your Creditors - You Can Still File For Bankruptcy!

Posted on March 30, 2006
By Richard K Gustafson I’ve heard reports that some credit card company collectors are telling people that they can’t file for bankruptcy on their credit cards anymore. That statement is a lie! Bankruptcy is alive and well! Most studies have shown that 80-90% of people who look into bankruptcy could still qualify for chapter 7 [...

Facing Foreclosure?

Posted on March 15, 2006
By Richard K. Gustafson II If you are facing foreclosure, you’re not alone! There are many reports across the country that discuss rising foreclosure rates. RealtyTrac, the leading online marketplace for foreclosed properties, reported a 13% increase nationwide in December 2005 and increased in every quarter in 2005...

Can I Keep My House and File Bankruptcy?

Posted on March 06, 2006
One of the biggest myths surrounding bankruptcy is that you will lose your house if you file for bankruptcy. I recently met with an elderly couple who had a significant amount of unsecured debt and had struggled financially for many years, just paying the minimums on their credit card payments...

Bankruptcy Reform Not Working

Posted on February 25, 2006
By Richard K Gustafson, II A report released by the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys says that the new reform legislation has failed to stop abuses and instead has thrown up obstacles to people with legitimate reasons to file for bankruptcy...

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