How spouses hold title to their home has far broader implications than the stepped up tax basis at death noted by The Consumerist. The post noted correctly that a house held in community property gets a step-up in basis on both the decedent’s half and the surviving spouse’s half of the property when one [...]

Most people don’t realize that they can go bankrupt waiting for social security disability to kick in to help with their living expenses. People think that if something happens that disables them, that they will be able to receive disability income to live on. In a recent New York Times article on social security [...]

The IRS standards are ridiculous. I cannot live on what they say I should live on. How can I convince the Judge otherwise? The best way to help your attorney help you is to gather documentation.
Documentation is your best evidence for presenting your budget to the Court. The means test requirement [...]

As usual, the Attorney always will say “it depends.” But yes, it is possible. It all depends on the type of debt you have. Generally speaking, debts scheduled in bankruptcy proceedings are either considered consumer debts or non-consumer debts. If you can prove more than ½ your debts are non-consumer debts, [...]

Frequently, cases in bankruptcy are converted from one chapter to another. Most commonly, is the conversion from Chapter 13 to Chapter 7. More and more chapter 13 cases are converting as a result of debtors realizing that it simply makes no economic sense to save their home in Chapter 13 in light of [...]

No-one ever wants to file for bankruptcy, but the residents of Florida face an uncertain future. Business bankruptcies are going up. Consumer bankruptcies are going up, despite the New Bankruptcy Law. I hate to say it, but I believe that 2008 will make 2007 look like a economic dream year.
My reasons are [...]

Massachusetts homestead law protects $500,000 of equity in a home for the benefit of the debtor and family. The 2005 bankruptcy amendments restrict a homestead to $125,000 if acquired within 1,215 days before the bankruptcy filing.
In In re Walsh, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Somma ruled that a homestead, declared by married debtor who filed [...]

Chapter 13 plan payments are calculated with an even payment plan over a number of years, but some debts are paid off before others. The plan payment is calculated to pay an even amount every month until completed, but that doesn’t mean that each debt gets a payment every month that the plan [...]

Time to make those New Year’s resolutions. One of the best things about the New Year is to reflect on the past year and decide what, if anything, you want to do differently. We all want to eat better and do more exercise, but economic health maybe just as important.
The vast majority [...]

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Somma ruled in In re Machado that a Massachusetts Chapter 13 plan may provide for separate payments to a student lender, depending on the particular facts of the case.
This opinion approved a below-median income debtor’s 60 month plan where the regular unsecured creditors at $26,000 shared $276 per month, a 4% [...]