A lot has been written recently on the subprime loan problem.  These are loans made to help you buy a house by structuring the pay back of the loan at less than the normal monthly payment.  The “normal” payment is usually based on the amount of the loan, the length of the loan and the [...]

Popularity: 7% [?]

Today’s issue of the New York Times includes a feature entitled “Dubious Fees Hit Borrowers in Foreclosure.”  The article describes a phenomenon that most bankruptcy lawyers see on a regular basis - bizarre and unexplained fees tacked on to a mortgage balance when a property enters into the foreclosure or bankruptcy process.
If you liked that [...]

Popularity: 22% [?]

Your stuff, for most bankruptcy purposes, is worth what you could sell it for. That doesn’t sound like a startling proposition. But there is something funny going on in the heads of my clients when I ask them what their “stuff” is worth.
Me: What are the contents of your home worth?
Client: [...]

Popularity: 10% [?]

Kevin Byers is a CPA and operates his own forensic accounting consulting practice.  He spent many years investigating mortgage lending and digging into the hidden world of securitized transactions.  Kevin sheds light on the process in a new outline that provides easy to understand definitions and provides resources for further study into the financial practice [...]

Popularity: 14% [?]

Yes, several types of bankruptcy are available to a small business.  Big businesses make big news filing bankruptcy.  We have all heard about the airline bankruptcies and the newspapers are full of stories about home lenders filing bankruptcy.  These bankruptcy cases are multi-million dollar affairs; usually filed under Chapter 11 as major corporate reorganizations.  Small [...]

Popularity: 23% [?]

Visit the Google search engine and type in the search term “student credit cards.”  You will not be surprised to find that the top sites listed are databases directly marketing to students that allows them to search for a credit card that best suits their needs.
If you liked that post, then try these…Top Ten Personal Finance Mistakes [...]

Popularity: 18% [?]

You should treat your bankruptcy lawyer with a great deal of respect…if they deserve it. Yes, I am a bankruptcy lawyer. Every day people who never wanted to even consider filing for bankruptcy come to see me. Besides being reluctant to be in my office, they walk in all stressed out. [...]

Popularity: 54% [?]

Legislation has been introduced to regulate the mortgage broker business, responsible for much of the predatory lending and sub-prime mortgage crisis which continues to rollick the financial markets.
That big government cure, regulation, is back. Not my favorite, tends to give the false impression that someone with a license is [...]

Popularity: 16% [?]

If you are considering bankruptcy, you have probably discovered that before you can file the case, you have to take a U.S. Trustee-approved credit counseling class (also called a “briefing”).  This does not sound like a good time, and the last thing you need right now is a time-wasting, make-work project consisting of Lord knows [...]

Popularity: 6% [?]