Valuing your assets when filing out your bankruptcy schedules can be challenging. After all, what is a closetful of clothes or a garage full of tools worth? You are tempted to ask: why does it matter? Asset value matters in several different contexts in a bankruptcy case. Using the wrong measure of value or over-estimating […]
What’s The Income Limit for Filing Bankruptcy
Actually, there’s no income limit for filing bankruptcy. None, nada, no way. Instead, there’s the infamous means test, an awkward and complex formula, written by Congress, to identify individuals who are entitled to file Chapter 7. Not everyone has to take the means test. The means test doesn’s apply to individuals whose debt is primarily […]
Will recent credit card use sink my bankruptcy
If I’ve used credit cards before filing bankruptcy, do I have to wait? Too many people considering filing think there is some sort of waiting period between financial activity and filing bankruptcy. So, let’s look at the issues in play surrounding recent credit card charges and seeking bankruptcy relief. There’s no 90 day rule Everyone […]
What looks bad to the trustee in prebankruptcy conduct
Worried that a bankruptcy trustee will examine your sitution and somehow disqualify you from bankruptcy because of something you did (or didn’t do) right before you filed? Not to worry. Your bankruptcy discharge does not depend on the trustee’s approval of your money choices in the run-up to bankruptcy. There is no subjective do-we-approve-of-the-debtors-money-management test to get […]
What You Can Do With Money Before Filing Bankruptcy
Worried that a bankruptcy judge or trustee is going to scour your spending before bankruptcy, looking for behavior that would disqualify you from bankruptcy relief. It’s not so. Yet there seems to be real anguish that “they” are going to toss your case out of bankruptcy court because of some “fault” in how you’ve handled […]
Will I Get a Discharge in My Bankruptcy Case
Getting a bankruptcy discharge is what almost all cases are about. So the question of whether or not you’ll get a discharge looms large in Chapter 7. The short answer is that if you are eligible for a discharge, you’re almost certain to get a discharge. Eligibility, in this context, looks at whether you’ve gotten […]
Take Credit For The Tax Deductions That Hide In Chapter 13
It’s tax time: don’t overlook tax deductions in Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. Tax deductions lurk in the most unlikely places. If your Chapter 13 plan is catching up home loan arrears, there’s a deduction hiding in the trustee’s disbursement records. Most likely, the lender’s filed proof of claim in the bankruptcy case is full of […]
Disarm The Debt Collector: Understanding The Weapons of Debt Collection
You can stop a debt collector cold, wherever you live, using federal law. It doesn’t take a lawyer, a court, or an enforcer. That’s because the weapons of a debt collector are fear, shame, and annoyance. The weapon delivery system is communication. Those weapons don’t have to be any more threatening than a plastic toy […]
Your Tax Refund Is Exposed In Bankruptcy, Unless…
The prospect of a tax refund makes most of us light up even when we haven’t even calculated what the refund might be. But if you’re thinking of filing bankruptcy before you actually see Uncle Sam’s check, take a minute to plan. Your right to that refund is property of your bankruptcy estate even if […]
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