Avoid Bankruptcy
The first but definitely not the easiest thought that comes to most people when they are neck-deep in debt is to file bankruptcy. Filing bankruptcy seems to be the last straw left in the deluge of unpaid bills and abusive creditor calls. The situation is somewhat like this. You buy whatever catches your fancy and you thank yourself you had the blessed credit cards. It’s good as long as you are spending.
When it’s paytime, you realize your misdoing. Abusive creditor calls may be robbing you of your sleep. Things may go so wrong that being repentant also does not help. What do you do? File bankruptcy. Stop. There are better and realistic ways of fighting debts. Avoid bankruptcy by all means. There have been millions who have filed bankruptcy in the US of A last year! What causes this decision? And how can you avoid such a disastrous situation?
Credit cards should be given the lion’s share of the blame behind such reckless spending. Credit card agencies will tell you it’s you who should know how to use your cards. Anyway, let’s take a situation where you have incurred a lot of debts and you don’t know where to run. You have curtailed all your expenses, you take a bus to office, your wife does the same and your children take the school bus. Your car is a toy in the garage. You have stopped entertaining friends and have stopped going over to them. When you see, even after a month, you are exactly where you started off, you know it’s time to take some extreme measures.
Bankruptcy Your Best Bet?
Filing bankruptcy is a common practice among the U.S. Over 2 million people file for bankruptcy every year. So many families today are swimming in debt, which is not surprising with the amount of credit that is being offered. If you pay your bills, you’re given the opportunity to run up more bills. For young people, this is often too much responsibility to handle. Many people choose bankruptcy in order to gain a fresh start.
However, bankruptcy leaves you with a bad record. This makes it harder to buy a house, a car, or any other big-ticket item soon after you have filed for bankruptcy. Mortgage lenders will certainly be more cautious before granting a loan to someone with a history of bankruptcy.
Luckily, there are other choices.
Debt Consolidation
It seems like every other TV commercial is talking about debt consolidation. Why? Well, it’s a big market and many people are opting for debt consolidation before taking the plunge into bankruptcy. Before you decide to take this route, you must ask yourself: Will I be able to pay all of my other bills on time and still be able to survive monthly? Failing to pay a debt consolidation loan could cause you to lose your home to a creditor. So, before you decide to consolidate your debt, make sure you can handle the payments. Know all of the facts.
Quick Tip… Shop around for a loan consolidation company. Compare interest rates and company reputation. Get as much information as you can about each potential company so that you will receive the most manageable payment.
Another option is to make a settlement. If possible, it is best to try and pay off your debt in full or to make an arrangement for payments with the creditor. Do not borrow money to pay off your debts. For most people, this only leads them deeper into debt.
Bankruptcy FAQs
As far back as colonial times, every citizen has a constitutional right to file for bankruptcy. By declaring bankruptcy, one is relieved of mandatory collection activities for debts existing at the time of filing by a legal “stay” on these activities. The first version of US bankruptcy or Federal Insolvency laws appeared in 1800, and has been evolving ever since.
Chapter 7 or “straight liquidation” bankruptcy permits the retention of exempt assets and property and can be used by individuals, partnership businesses and corporations. Under Chapter 7, recent tax obligations, debts to government units and alimony/child support are not exempt. In case of debts incurred during a marriage, both spouses must file for bankruptcy – otherwise the debts are transferred to the non-filing spouse.
Chapter 13, or “wage earner reorganization” bankruptcy can only be filed by individuals who have a steady source of income. It can be filed by debtors with unsecured debts that do not exceed $100,000 and secured debts that do not exceed $350,000. Basically, filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy indicates an intention and willingness to make good one’s debts within five years. With this understanding, the applicant’s existing assets are not liquidated.
Chapter 11 is a more flexible version of Chapter 13 available to individuals and businesses. It is generally not preferred by individuals, because it entails greater court-related expenses and calls for frequent personal appearances in court.
Once Chapter 7 bankruptcy has been legally sanctioned, creditors have no claim on future income. If assets have been concealed, misrepresented or surreptitiously transferred at the time of filing for bankruptcy, the discharge from debts can be either refused or declared null and void.
Bankruptcy? Don’t Get Messy With It
Despite the serious short term and long-term effects associated with filing bankruptcy, the number of people filing bankruptcy lately has been on the increase. It is estimated that 5.4 people out of 1000 filed for bankruptcy last year and that this rate has been growing at an average of 7%. The alarming ease with which people file for bankruptcy is a growing cause of concern for governments and financial organizations.
What is Bankruptcy? The word, Bankruptcy, means ‘broken bench’, literally. In the past, during the early days of banking and trading, when a debtor could not pay off his debts, his workbench was broken into two as a punishment and also as a warning for other debtors. But in recent times, the term is now used as a legal tool to help an individual or business discharge its burden of debts without been swallowed up by it. It is now a legal term, meaning that an individual cannot, within reason, pay off his various debts and has allowed the court system to take over his finances for the purpose of easing off his debts.
Bankruptcy laws were enacted in order to protect both debtor, and creditor. The laws were enacted to provide equal and fair measures to satisfy the objectives of all parties. The primary purpose of the laws of bankruptcy can be split in two:
- To give an honest debtor a fresh start in life by relieving him most of his debts
- To repay creditors in an orderly manner to the extent that the debtor has property available for payment.
Five Steps on How to Find and Choose A Bankruptcy Attorney
If you are like many men and women in the 21st century, you may have found yourself literally drowning in debt. As a result, you may have made the touch decision to file for bankruptcy. In this regard, you may be wondering what steps that you need to take to determine how to find and choose a bankruptcy attorney. Indeed, there are some specific steps you need to take in order to determine how to find and choose an appropriate attorney.
1. The first step in how to find and choose a bankruptcy attorney is to contact the local bar association in your community. While your local bar association will not make any specific recommendations about a particular lawyer, your local bar association will provide you with a list of lawyers in your community that specialize specifically in the practice of bankruptcy law. Because bankruptcy is such a specialized area of the law, it is vital that you obtain a lawyer that is specifically trained and experienced in the practice of bankruptcy law.
Additionally, there are lawyers that specialize in consumer bankruptcy law and commercial or business bankruptcy law. Depending on what type of bankruptcy case you will be filing — consumer or personal, commercial or business — will depend on what type of lawyer you actually will want to retain. (There are also lawyers who specialize in agricultural bankruptcies. Agriculture bankruptcies are also specialized and require the assistance of specifically trained attorneys.)