Start Tackling Your Debt

The primary advantage of filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy is being able to tackle your debt as soon as possible. There is a possibility that you are currently not paying anything to your creditors because you do not have enough money to pay all of them and you do not know which ones are worth paying anymore because you have already fallen behind. However, the idea of continuing to fall behind is something that likely scares you and makes you feel stressed. If you do want to start tackling your debt, filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy is the way to do it. You will still pay off your debt to the creditors who have allowed you to borrow from them, but it will be much easier for you to do so when your creditors stop charging interest and agree to accept less than what you originally owed them. If you would love to start the process of tackling your debt and paying things off little by little, now is the time to get the bankruptcy process started.

Pay Less Money Back to Creditors

If you are filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, it may be possible for you to pay less money back to the creditors over time. Before agreeing to a payment arrangement in which you will pay out a specified amount to your creditors based on what you owe and what you can afford, your attorney will work on negotiating with the creditors to get some of your debt reduced. For example, if you owe $5,000 to a creditor, the creditor may be willing to accept half of that amount over time if they know that you are now going to make regular payments without falling behind again. Not all creditors are willing to accept only half of what you owe to them, but there is a good chance that your attorney can get your debt significantly lowered for you before you even begin working on paying it all off.

Make One Monthly Payment

Did you fall behind on most or all your payments because it was hard for you to remember when to pay your different creditors? People often become frustrated and overwhelmed when they owe a lot of different amounts of money to different creditors on various days. If you have multiple credit cards and loans, the due dates for the minimum payment on those cards and loans were likely different from one another, causing you a lot of confusion. One of the great things about filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy is having the ability to make one monthly payment.

Instead of trying to remember to pay specified amounts to different creditors, you can make one monthly payment that is disbursed to each of the creditors that you are paying off. Paying $200 a month on a specific day is much easier to do than paying all kinds of amounts with interest attached on different days of the week. The amount you would need to pay on a monthly basis will vary based on a few different factors, including how much debt you currently owe to the different creditors and how much money you are currently earning on a monthly basis. Some of your living expenses are also considered before a monthly payment total is calculated for you. No matter your situation, the attorney will go above and beyond to make sure the monthly payment you need to make to your creditors is one that you can afford.

Improve Your Credit Score a Bit Faster

Having good credit is important for any adult. If you have bad credit, you will not get approved for a lot of things, including mortgage loans that you might need to have if you want to purchase a home in the future. People with good credit are often charged much less interest than those with bad credit, too. If you do not want to constantly get turned down for things over the next several decades, you need to work on improving your credit score. Despite all the debt you currently have, you still have a chance to get a fresh start and get your credit score to where you want it to be over time.

When you file for other bankruptcy chapters, such as chapter 7, you will have a mark on your credit report that stays there for 10 years. It is something other creditors will see when they are pulling up your credit score details. However, if you decide that you want to go through with filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you can have the mark removed from your credit report in as little as seven years. As a result, you would get to improve your credit score at an even faster pace. Seven years might seem like a long time, but it is far better than waiting 10 years to see your credit score will start to improve.

Avoid Losing Your Home

If you already own a home and have fallen behind on making mortgage payments, filing chapter 13 bankruptcy could help you avoid losing your home. Once you start the filing process, you should begin making monthly payments on your mortgage. However, the amount that is already owed to the mortgage company may be included in the debt that you are resolving by filing for bankruptcy in the first place. The idea of losing the home you love and have invested in over the years is frightening and stressful. If you do not want the foreclosure process to begin, you can work on taking the proper steps to avoid such a bad situation by filing for chapter 13 bankruptcy with an attorney’s assistance.

When you have too much debt, it becomes difficult to keep up with it all. If you have fallen behind over the past several months and owe thousands of dollars to multiple creditors, you should think about filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy. When you file for bankruptcy, you can start tackling your debt, pay a bit less to the creditors, avoid losing your home, and even improve your low credit score over time. If you know the situation is only going to get worse, now is the time to find a bankruptcy attorney to work with you.

If you have a lot of debt and are looking to find out about different bankruptcy options that could work best for you, contact Bouloukos Oglesby & Mitchell at 205-352-4205. Call the law office to schedule your consultation where you can go over your financial situation and learn more about the process of filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

How Does Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Work?

If you want to file for Chapter 13, you will need to meet certain requirements. You should begin this process by hiring an experienced bankruptcy lawyer to walk you through everything you are going to need to know and do. It is important for you to understand what is going to happen when you submit your bankruptcy paperwork. Before you even file Chapter 13, your attorney can help you review your finances to determine if you are eligible to file this way.

You will need to have proof of a steady income, whether you are self-employed, receiving disability benefits, or working a part-time/full-time position. If you do not have a source of income, you cannot file this way. You can bring copies of bank statements and tax forms to provide proof of your income. There are also limits to the amount of debt you can have when filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy. The attorney can talk to you about those debt limits to make sure that your debt has not surpassed those set limits.

Upon determining your eligibility, you can start the process of completing the bankruptcy forms with help from your attorney. There are questions on these forms that you are going to need to answer honestly but having a legal professional there to review the paperwork and explain it to you in detail is always beneficial. There is a pre-filing course that you are going to need to take. The course is often referred to as a credit counseling course and is something that you are typically required to do before you even begin the full bankruptcy process. The purpose of the credit counseling course is to help you better understand the steps you can take to avoid having to file for bankruptcy again in the future. After all, you want to improve your finances and stay out of debt when this is all over.

Do I Have to Sell Valuable Belongings?

If you were filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you would likely need to sell off some of your valuable belongings to pay off the debt you owe to all the different creditors. Unfortunately, this can cause a lot of stress in your life because you might not want to part with some of those belongings. The great thing about filing Chapter 13 is that you are not going to need to sell off any of your belongings to pay your debt. Rather than selling off what you have to pay from what you owe, you can get into an affordable repayment plan that works best for you and helps you save money.

You do need to agree to a repayment plan with your creditors, but you can often end up paying much less than you initially owed to them. It all starts with the negotiations. By providing details of your income and the regular expenses that you have, your attorney can work on negotiating with your creditors to get them to lower the amount that you currently owe to them. It is possible to have the debt reduced by up to 50, which means you would only need to pay half of what your creditors were initially expecting to receive from you. Once you do settle on a specific amount with the creditors, you can make a convenient arrangement to pay off that amount little by little on a monthly basis.

In the past, you may have felt overwhelmed and stressed over your finances because you were spending thousands of dollars each month on debt repayments alone. After the negotiations take place and the debt is drastically reduced, monthly payments are much lower and far more affordable. Your bankruptcy attorney will work on making sure the amount you are expected to pay each month is an amount you can truly afford to pay without feeling stressed over your finances. After you have agreed to pay that set amount each month, you are locked into the repayment plan. The repayment plan will continue until you have paid off your debt and it will usually take anywhere between three and five years to complete.

How do I Know if Bankruptcy is the Right Decision?

Making the decision to file for bankruptcy is a big deal. It is something that will show up on your credit report for at least seven years, which is what you need to take into consideration before you officially decide to file. Although it does appear on your credit report and can leave its mark for quite some time, it is often the best solution for those with regular income who have simply fallen behind on their monthly payments and need a bit of help when trying to get back on track. If there is no other way to pay off your debt, this option can save you money in the long run.

If you have valuable items that you do not want to sell off to pay some of the debt you owe, Chapter 7 is simply out of the question. If you know that you have the funds to pay off some debt because you have a regular income, but you are simply falling behind each month because you are trying to catch up, Chapter 13 is a great solution. Your attorney will work hard to negotiate with your creditors to get your debt lowered and will then work on setting up an acceptable repayment plan.

When you are tired of receiving constant calls from creditors who are requesting their funds from you and making you feel both anxious and frustrated, filing for bankruptcy would put a stop to that. Once you start the process, the creditors will no longer contact you and your attorney will work on dealing with them to keep you from having to do so. It always helps to go to a free consultation with an attorney to discuss your debt and current financial situation.

Get Out of Debt Without the Frustration

If you have found yourself dealing with way more debt than you can handle and you have fallen behind on your payments to creditors over the past few months, you might feel like there is no way for you to get out of the frustrating financial situation you are in, but that is not true. Bankruptcy is an option for you to consider. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is an option that makes it possible for you to lower your debt while agreeing to a payment plan you can afford without going broke. If you would like to begin the bankruptcy process, you should get in touch with an experienced bankruptcy lawyer. When you want to receive the proper guidance and support during this tough time, contact Bouloukos Oglesby & Mitchell at 205-351-0800 for a free consultation.

Goes Over Your Financial Situation With You

One of the first and most important reasons to let an attorney help you with filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy is to make sure that this is the right decision for you based on your financial situation and the types of belongings you have. If you have limited income and earn less than the median that is set for your state, you are likely an eligible candidate for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, but your attorney will let you know for sure after gathering information on your expenses and your monthly income.

Explains the Exemptions to You

Rather than getting on a payment plan, you would need to sell some of your belongings to pay off the debt that you currently owe, which is otherwise known as liquidation. While this would likely concern some people who may not want to part with certain belongings, there are several things you need to know. Although you would be expected to sell additional properties, vehicles, and other valuables to pay back the amount that you owe, some of your belongings are considered exempt, including your home and possibly even the vehicle that you regularly drive around in. Your attorney could make you fully aware of any exempt items you would get to keep despite filing for bankruptcy.

It helps to have an attorney explain the exemptions. When you have this information, you can work on becoming fully prepared to part with certain belongings while feeling more at ease knowing that you will get to keep some of your belongings. It can give you much more peace of mind about completing the filing process.

Handles the Paperwork

If you are going to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you need to fill out certain forms. It may be overwhelming to have all these forms that you need to fill out in front of you, but that is when the attorney can help you and make the situation a bit less stressful for you. It all starts with the Voluntary Petition for Individuals Filing for Bankruptcy. It is a form for individual debtors looking to get the process started. Some of the information you would need to provide on the form includes:

• Your name
• Why you are choosing to file for bankruptcy
• The specific chapter you are choosing to file
• Your current residence
• Details on the current debt you have

The Voluntary Petition for Individuals Filing for Bankruptcy is the first of several forms you will need to fill out. If this is your first time going through this process, you may be confused by some of the questions that are included on the form, which is why it is best for you to have an attorney present when you are filling out the answers to each of those questions. If you are stuck on a specific question, you can let the attorney know and get help with answering it.

There is a fee to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy, but you could potentially have that fee waived. If you would like to have the fee waived because of your financial situation, you would need to fill out an application to have it waived. When completing the application, you will need to provide details on:

• The current size of your household
• The amount of money you are earning on a monthly basis
• The reason you are unable to pay the fee
• The type of assistance you may currently receive from the government
• The amount of cash you currently have

The last thing you want to do is make a mistake when you are completing these important forms. Because you want to answer everything in the correct way, you should have an attorney assisting you throughout the filing process.

Once you have completed the paperwork, your attorney can file it with the local bankruptcy court, making sure they receive it. The most complicated part of the entire process is completing all this paperwork. After you have completed it with the help of your attorney, you may feel relieved to know that you are one step closer to achieving the financial freedom you desire.

Gathers Information for the Trustee

The court will assign a trustee to the case who will need to go over the information that pertains directly to your bankruptcy filing. The trustee is the person who will assess the value of non-exempt property and then make sure that your creditors receive the money they are entitled to from the sale of any non-exempt property. There are certain things that you should be prepared to send out to the trustee, including tax returns for the past several years and statements from your bank. You can print this information out and give it to your attorney to handle it for you. The attorney will make sure all the important documents are safely and securely sent out to the trustee in a timely manner. It is necessary to have the information sent out as quickly as possible. You cannot have your debt discharged until the trustee receives the required information.

Makes Sure You Take the Required Courses

Those filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy are required to complete credit counseling courses. These courses will help educate you further on how to improve your financial situation, properly use credit cards, and ultimately avoid the kind of debt situation you were once in. Your attorney can get you prepared to take these courses because then you can get them completed and out of the way while learning useful information on money management and setting a budget that works best for you.

Attends the Meeting With the Creditors

You will need to attend a meeting with your creditors and the trustee. The attorney will be there for you during this meeting while you answer questions about your finances. The primary reason for attending this type of meeting is to ensure that you are providing the most honest and accurate answers and are not hiding any crucial details about your finances. You may feel a bit nervous about attending this meeting, especially when your trustee is there, but the attorney will tell you exactly what you should expect to experience when you get there.

Answers All the Questions You Might Have

When you have questions to ask and you need reliable, accurate answers, your attorney is the one who will be there for you to answer everything. Even if you are not in the presence of your attorney when you think of a question that you would like to ask, you can always contact the office and leave a message for your attorney who will get back to you as quickly as possible.

Filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy may be the best decision for you to make to get out of the difficult financial situation that you are in. If you are planning to go through with this process, it is in your best interest to have a bankruptcy attorney by your side throughout each step. If you would like to start your free consultation, reach out to Bouloukos Oglesby & Mitchell at 205-322-1641.

However, you do not have to succumb to their bullying and depending on your situation you may have options available to you. If you or a loved one are being harassed by creditors, it is in your best interest to contact an experienced Birmingham bankruptcy rights attorney so that we can strategize about the best possible outcomes for your situation.

The Rights of Debtors

Being bullied by creditors is against the law, depending on the behavior that they are engaging in. Though creditors have many avenues to pursue debt that is deemed legal, there are also many practices that they may engage in that are illegal.

These illegal tactics consist of:

• Making threats
• Contacting third parties or calling at odd hours of the day such as before seven a.m. and after nine p.m.
• Making false statements about the debt that is owed such as the amount that is owed
• The creditor continuing to contact you after you have obtained an attorney and notified the creditor of such

When these illegal tactics happen and you are constantly bullied by your creditors, there are ways to eliminate this behavior through the Federal Debt Collection Practices Act.

The Federal Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) protects debtors from abusive and invasive collection practices of debt collectors. Under this law, abusive practices in the collection of consumer debts are eliminated because under this act consumers are provided with an avenue for disputing debts and obtaining validation of debts as well as given ways to contact the pertinent person if a creditor has crossed that legal line. Because creditors can be very manipulative, you may not know whether their acts are illegal or not. Because of this, it is in your best interest to seek legal advice if you believe that you are being bullied by creditors.

Get Legal Help

Just because you are facing hard times does not mean that you should be bullied by creditors and this is against the law. Depending on your situation you may have options available to you. Because of this it is important to seek legal advice and representation. If you or a loved one have been bullied by creditors, it is in your best interest to contact an experienced Bankruptcy law attorney at Bouloukos, Oglesby & Mitchell to help you with your case. Contact our office for a free consultation today.

There are two types of bankruptcy that are considered for individuals who need some assistance in getting back on their feet. A chapter 13 bankruptcy is designed for those that can pay back the debt owed, but are behind and need the court’s help in catching up and getting back on a consistent payment plan. A chapter 7 bankruptcy is considered a complete bankruptcy where the debtor is unable to pay back any of the debt and is legally absolved from any responsibility.

A chapter 13 involves setting up a payment plan for all outstanding debt and arrangements are made to pay on a monthly basis to the trustee of the court. Once filed, all collection activity on the part of the creditor must stop until the decision has been made by the court. Creditors are allowed to contest the filing at the meeting of the creditors, where you and the creditors meet to discuss the situation with the trustee. The first monthly payment must be made 30 days from the date of filing, regardless of the state of the case. This shows the court that you have the ability and willingness to pay back the debt. In most cases of a Chapter 13, you are able to keep your assets unless they are held as collateral on a debt that you want to relinquish.

A chapter 7 is a complete dismissal of all debt and is based on your current income and assets. Keeping of assets in a Chapter 7 filing becomes more of an issue than if you opted for a repayment plan through a chapter 13. Generally speaking, you can keep your home or car in what’s called reaffirming the debt by agreeing to continue to make payments on items held as collateral for a loan. Any assets that you own that are unencumbered by debt are looked at more closely by the court as a means to liquidate for cash to apply to the debt owed to your creditors.

The type that is best for you will depend on your current income, assets and outstanding debt. Both types are based on a means test specifically formulated for your state. If you find yourself in a difficult financial situation, consult with a bankruptcy attorney to discuss your options.