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Credit card “overspending” parallels housing crisis

By Cathy Moran

Forbes has compiled a list of cities where credit card spending is highest.

My scan of the list suggests that this list is simply another version of the areas of the country where housing is in trouble.  Homeowners with outsized mortgage payments rely on credit cards to make up the difference needed to support the family.

Which leads me to those TV ads for attorneys or other services offering help with mortgage modification.  Assuming the advertiser is successful in negotiating a mortgage modification, the homeowner is still  left with the debt  that piled up while they struggled with the original loan terms.

Even without the ability to modify mortgages on principal residences, Chapter 13 is a superior tool for addressing the homeowner’s entire financial situation.

And the fees for the professional involved are subject to court supervision, something missing from those drumming up business on TV.

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Filed Under: Consumer Rights

About Cathy Moran

I'm a veteran bankruptcy lawyer and consumer advocate in California's Silicon Valley. I write, teach, and speak in the hopes of expanding understanding of how bankruptcy can make life better in a family's future.

Bankruptcy Basics

About The Soapbox

You’ve arrived at the Bankruptcy Soapbox, a resource of bankruptcy information and consumer law.

Soapbox is a companion site to Bankruptcy in Brief, where I try to be largely explanatory and even handed (Note I said “try”).

Here, I allow myself to tell stories and express strong opinions. We dig deeper into how to consider bankruptcy and navigate a bankruptcy case.

Moran Law Group
Bankruptcy specialists for individuals and small businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area

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Those considering filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy worry about "what happens to my bank account?" Will the trustee take all the money? How do I pay my living expenses after I file? The short answer is: nothing changes. The account remains yours and available for all the expenses of day to day living. Because, … Read more

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