Are you being bombarded by harassing phone calls from debt recovery agents? There are thousands of homes like yours suffering from the same predicament and financial insecurity. Mounting debts can occur from mismanagement of funds and bad spending habits, or they can happen from some sudden event like a divorce, job loss or medical emergency. Whatever the cause may be if you are in such a condition, seek professional advice from bankruptcy lawyers to evaluate your legal options.
The government has passed legislation that makes filing and qualifying for bankruptcy to be difficult and complex. Only experienced bankruptcy lawyers can help you find a way out of your financial morass.
Credit counseling for 6 months prior to filing for a petition is now mandatory. The credit counselor will review your financial situation and customize solutions to manage your money better. Alternatives like debt management plans can be suggested by credit counselors. Alternatively you can opt for debt settlement but this is often not advised as it can negatively impact your credit report and can be dicey.
An individual can try a number of things to avoid bankruptcy. If you are worried about losing your home to a foreclosure or car to the financier, you can directly contact the lenders to seek some more time to repay your loans. Lenders can make special concessions and extend repayment deadlines for mortgages or repossession of your automobile, if you explain your situation to your lenders. If you have been regular with payments in the past, and they are convinced your predicament is a temporary one, you can be given a grace period to repay outstanding dues.
Taking on some austerity measures and sticking to a budget can also help in curbing expenditure and bring down bills. If despite your most sincere efforts you cannot bring your finances back into health you have to consider filing for bankruptcy.
The exempt properties that you can hope to keep after bankruptcy proceedings depend on your state of residence. Generally exemption statutes will permit you to keep your home, car and personal items like clothes. At one time debtors would avoid paying up to creditors during a bankruptcy by transferring assets from non-exempt to exempt category. With reform legislation in bankruptcy laws implemented since 2005, this is no longer possible. Other mandates of the new act makes filing a petition quite difficult. Bankruptcy Lawyers are held liable if their clients submit inaccurate accounts of their assets and try to conceal assets. If you are considering filing for bankruptcy be ready to come clean to your lawyers and give them all the information they need
