I have always said that natural selection worked in such a way that all the nice people ended up in sales and all the nasty people ended up in collections. Now I find, as occasionally happens, that I am wrong! Well, not completely. Nice looking people, young females, of course, are being used by some [...]
May 2009
The Senate passed the Credit Cardholder’s Bill of Rights on May 20, 2009. The bill already passed the House of Representatives and will now go to President Obama for his signature. This piece of legislation actually limits some of the credit card company’s methods of doing business. It forces them to be more honest and [...]
In the real world, families help each other. Sometimes this help can be in the form of co-signing a debt or even entering into debt to help a family member. In my practice I frequently see situations where an adult child signs as the sole or primary mortgagee for a parent’s house. Sometimes a parent [...]
A Chapter 13 is a court-administered debt repayment plan. In a typical case, a percentage of general unsecured debts are paid (like credit cards) and the unpaid balances are discharged. How long the plan lasts depends on income. The 2005 BAPCPA bankruptcy amendments created “commitment periods” that vary based on whether a debtor is above [...]
Once a bankruptcy is filed, a credit union may not apply funds received from a bankruptcy debtor’s paychecks by means of an automatic payroll deduction to the payments due for a vehicle loan, according to the Eighth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel. In this case, In re Krivohlavek, No. 08-6047 (8th Cir. BAP May 22, 2009), the [...]
Most people are not thrilled with the prospect of filing bankruptcy. Most people would rather the whole affair be kept as quiet as possible. While this is understandable, it is sometimes advisible for you to discuss your financial situation with your family members and let them know that you are thinking about bankruptcy. Sometimes, family members [...]
