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What a Discharge in Bankruptcy Really Means
When you seek protection under Chapter 7 of the bankruptcy laws, you can permanently "discharge" certain debts in exchange for the sale of some of your personal property. In fact, you may even be able to discharge some debt in a Chapter 13 reorganization. What is a discharge? What does it mean and what doesn't it mean? In essence, a discharge … [Read more...]
Reaffirming a Debt in a Bankruptcy Proceeding
When you file for protection under Chapter 7 of the bankruptcy law, the court can seize non-exempt assets to sell and pay off your creditors. However, if you have personal property not covered by the exemptions, and you want to protect that property, you can choose to "reaffirm" the debt on that property. What Is Reaffirmation of a Debt? In its … [Read more...]
How to Respond When You Have Been Sued for a Fraudulent Transfer in Bankruptcy
Some Tips When You Have Been Sued for Making a Fraudulent Transfer in Bankruptcy When you seek protection under the bankruptcy laws, you must comply with extremely stringent restrictions regarding the transfer of assets before and after your filing. If the bankruptcy trustee or the court has credible evidence that you improperly transferred … [Read more...]
Cancellation of Debt as Income
Here's something that may surprise you if you're trying to get a creditor to forgive or discharge a debt that you owe them, particularly if it's a mortgage lender or a company that has extended you some form of credit—if the debt is discharged, you may be required to claim the amount forgiven as income on your next personal tax return! But wait a … [Read more...]
What Bankruptcy Cannot Do for You
A Chapter 7 (liquidation) or Chapter 13 (reorganization) filing offers many benefits—relief from harassment by creditors, the opportunity to wipe out unsecured debt (if you qualify) and a chance to restructure your debt so that you can meet your financial obligations. But it's not a panacea—there are limits on the extent to which a personal … [Read more...]
What Bankruptcy Can Do for You
The federal bankruptcy laws were enacted to help men and women get a second chance, but they're not a cure-all for financial problems. There are specific limits to the extent to which a bankruptcy filing can help you resolve financial challenges. The Ways a Bankruptcy Filing Can Help One of the most important components of the bankruptcy law is … [Read more...]
The Means Test in a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Filing
There's a common and persistent misunderstanding about the U.S. bankruptcy laws—one that insists that anyone can file at any time and escape liability for their debts. In fact, under the considerable revisions to the bankruptcy laws in 2005, anyone seeking to permanently discharge debts in a Chapter 7 proceeding must first qualify by submitting to … [Read more...]
Short-Selling Your Home as an Alternative to Bankruptcy
If you are struggling to meet your financial obligations, and your most significant debt is your mortgage, you may have considered selling your home and getting out from under that debt. But what if you are "under water" on the mortgage loan—what if the fair market value of your home (what you could sell it for in the market) is less than … [Read more...]
Situations Where Chapter 7 Bankruptcy May Not Be Available
Under the federal bankruptcy laws, you can discharge most unsecured debts through a Chapter 7 proceeding, though you need to qualify by submitting to a means test first. Child support arrearages, student loan payments and tax obligations are generally not dischargeable, with extremely limited exceptions. There are other instances where bankruptcy … [Read more...]
