Overdue debts will not send you to jail. Please repeat: overdue debts will not get you jailed. Yet it is disturbing how many people fear that not paying their debts is criminal and might land them in jail. Relax: America abolished debtors’ prisons some 250 years ago. Can they put a lien on me? But jail is not […]
What Causes Bankruptcy?
I was playing in my head with a piece I was writing for consumers about the bankruptcy decision. I caught myself thinking about “whether the bankruptcy was caused by mortgage debt or ….” . And I hauled myself to a halt. How did the words “bankruptcy” and “cause” get linked in my head? In my […]
Bouncing Back From Bankruptcy: The To-Do List
Recovering from bankruptcy isn’t hard. You’ve hurdled the debt chasm and finished your bankruptcy case. There’s a fresh start ahead. But where do you start on that fresh start? Consider this to-do list for bouncing back from bankruptcy. Keep on keeping on Whether your bankruptcy case was a Chapter 7, over and done in months, or […]
What The Wild Things Teach Us About Bankruptcy
I miss Maurice Sendak, the late author of children’s books. What does a book about a naughty child who adventures in a nighttime land of monsters have to do with being scared of bankruptcy? The last image in his signature book, Where The Wild Things Are, is my touchpiece for clients afraid to file bankruptcy. […]
Bankruptcy Disclosure: Don’t Let Orange Be The New Black
How will anyone know? That’s the question clients ask about assets that they don’t want to disclose on their bankruptcy schedules. Clients are usually afraid of losing the property or of involving family and friends with the bankruptcy court. They really just want to fly under the radar in their social circles. Why do we […]
Turned Down For A Bank Account? Fight Back
Turned down when you tried to open a bank account? We have a clue why. We all know the big three credit reporting agencies: Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. But if you’ve been turned down for a bank account, you need to meet the other players in this space: the checking account screening companies. Certegy ChexSystems […]
What’s Included In Bankruptcy?
People ask, all the time, what’s included in bankruptcy? Too often, people use “included” to mean “discharged”. That confuses what do you disclose in your schedules with what is discharged at the end of the case. The short answer to what is included on your paperwork is EVERYTHING, dischargeable or not. What goes in the […]
Right To Support When Your Ex Files Bankruptcy
Outrage is the usual reaction when a former spouse with child support or alimony files bankruptcy. It reinforces all those less-than-flattering thoughts you harbor about your ex. But,maybe, that’s not the right reaction for two reasons, one old, one new. One is old: support debts can’t be wiped out in bankruptcy. The second reason is new: failure […]
What’s Wrong With Most Get-Out-Of-Debt Advice
Get-out-of-debt gurus too often miss the essential truth known to every carpenter. Measure twice, cut once Too many trite lists of tips to help you get out of debt miss the vital first step: understand the situation fully. How you got into debt Before you choose a get-out-of-debt path, understand where you’ve come from. Until […]
What’s Up After Tax Extension To File?
The tax extension in the mail and you don’t have to think about income taxes til October 15th approaches. Right? Not in my book, if you are self employed. The self employed don’t have their estimated income taxes withheld from their paychecks. There aren’t any paychecks if you are among that resolute band of entrepreneurs, […]
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