Motion for Relief – Behind on Mortgage Payments while in a Chapter 13

What happens if I get behind on mortgage payments while I am in a Chapter 13? You made the decision to file a bankruptcy and decided to keep you home. You file a Chapter 13 and are making your mortgage payments and your Chapter 13 plan payments as scheduled. Something comes up and you get […]

The average student loan debt is $40,000, amortized over 30 years. Many debtors are forced to make monthly payments in excess of $1,000, which is comparable to a mortgage payment. Bankruptcy laws were enacted to provide assistance to people suffering from overwhelming financial debt, but little help is offered to those burdened with student loans. Student […]

Someone co-signed a car for me. What are my options? You were in a bind, needed a co-signer and someone (a family member or friend) was willing to co-sign on a vehicle for you. Now you are in financial trouble and will be filing bankruptcy. The last thing you want is to negative effect that […]

How Is the Non-Filing Ex-Spouse Affected by Bankruptcy? Many individuals inquire whether they will be affected by their ex-spouse’s financial issues.  Often, they are not affected, but there are circumstances where the financial issues can negatively impact the non-filing ex-spouse.   For instance, the question of whether a person’s ex-spouse’s bankruptcy can negatively affect their credit […]

During the three to five years that you’re making payment on your Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you can incure new debt only with permission from the bankruptcy court. This provision is there to prevent the debtor from jeopardizing the success of the chapter 13 plan by incurring new debt which might be too high to repay. Sometimes […]

Ex-Spouses As Creditors Many people file bankruptcy as a way to stop a judgment or garnishment from being entered against them or to lift the judgment or garnishment if one is already in place.  Most civil judgments can be included in the bankruptcy, and the creditors can no longer make any attempt to collect on […]

Glossary of commonly used bankruptcy terms 341 hearing: A meeting conducted by the Trustee with the Debtor(s) and their attorney present. Creditors are welcome to attend if they wish. This is a mandatory meeting for all Debtor(s). There are very limited circumstances where appearance can be waived. A case can be dismissed for failure to […]

A motion to dismiss can be filed by a number of parties, including the trustee, a creditor, or even a voluntary motion to dismiss filed by the parties.  Here we will focus on motions to dismiss by the trustee.  This motion is basically the trustee asserting that the debtor(s) should not be allowed to continue […]

On occasion, there are circumstances that prevent a debtor from being able to continue making their chapter 13 payments.  In very limited circumstances, the debtor(s) may qualify for a hardship discharge.  If a debtor does qualify, the chapter 13 would be discharged without making any additional payments as if the plan was completed under the […]

How Can a Debtor Strip a Second Mortgage? In today’s housing market, many Debtors owe more on their house than the house is actually worth, and many people have second mortgages against their house.  You can determine what a house is worth by getting an appraisal or checking on what houses in the neighborhood have […]