The headline was compelling: The 5 Dumbest Things You Can Do If You Have Too Much Debt. I even liked the site’s name: How Life Works. That’s a tagline I’d like to use. I could make my own list of dumb ways to tackle debt, but better if someone else had already done it. Until […]
Is There Life After Bankruptcy?
Is bankruptcy worth it? If you see filing bankruptcy to get a fresh start as painful or less than honorable, you might wonder what life is like, on the other side of bankruptcy. What’s the return on taking the big step? I got a report from the other side this week from a Chapter 7 […]
Understand Bankruptcy Basics Before You Need Them
Bankruptcy basics are simple, at least in concept: bankruptcy is the legal system’s remedy for debts beyond the ability of the person who owes money to pay. Bankruptcy in the United States operates to satisfy a person’s debts to the extent possible and to enable those with debts they can’t pay to start over. Exemptions […]
The Worst Reason To Choose Debt Settlement Over Bankruptcy
The guy with an old debt asked if bankruptcy or debt settlement would cause greater damage to his “credit”. The money advice columnist gave the right answer to the wrong question. She got it backwards. She advised that bankruptcy was more damaging given that the nagging debts were already three years old and would drop off his […]
7 Essentials For Better Results From Filing Bankruptcy
Plan before filing bankruptcy and you get better, more certain relief. Even if you’re not quite sure that you’re ready to take the bankruptcy plunge, scout the bankruptcy territory. Take some time to learn the rules and explore ways to maximize the relief available in bankruptcy. If you don’t plan ahead and just rush into […]
Are You Better Off With Bankruptcy?
Who cares whether bankruptcy filings are up or down? Bankruptcy professionals, certainly. Economists, probably. But if it’s you and your checkbook, you take little comfort that lots of others are filing. Nor, when everyone else seems to be making it OK while you flounder, are you reassured. Bankruptcy seems to follow economic expansion. Some expansion […]
The Secret Alternative To Bankruptcy
Looking for the secret alternative to bankruptcy which will solve your debt problems without filing? Why not? Ads for debt settlement companies and do-it-yourself books always promise to reveal the tricks to make your bills vanish for pennies, without resort to bankruptcy. (Isn’t it interesting that these “secrets” are known only by people who want […]
Surefire Steps To Avoid Bankruptcy
Most people would rather parade naked down Main Street than file bankruptcy. Bankruptcy makes them feel exposed, defeated, ashamed. They’ll do anything to avoid bankruptcy. If you don’t want to go there, you can order your life so you don’t ever need bankruptcy relief from debts you can’t pay. I’ve figured out the formula that assures […]
What Happens To My Stuff In Different Bankruptcy Chapters
Will it be Chapter 7 v. 13? After you’ve made the decision to get a fresh start, you need to choose a bankruptcy chapter, usually Chapter 7 or Chapter 13. The choice of chapter is complex, involving many interconnected factors. Here we’re going to compare just the treatment of different kinds of assets in Chapter […]
Consider The Clawback of Pre-bankruptcy Transfers Before Filing
If you don’t understand clawback in bankruptcy, you might think that bankruptcy involves only what you have when you file. But that’s not how it works. Bankruptcy law gives a bankruptcy trustee to power to unwind transactions and transfers that diminish what the debtor has on the day the case is filed. The idea is […]
