In recent months, I have seen a decided increase in the number of mortgage deficiency claims. A deficiency claim, as you may know, represents the difference between the outstanding balance on a mortgage note and the fair market value of a piece of property. In Georgia, where I practice, real estate values have traditionally gone [...]
Jonathan Ginsberg, Atlanta Bankruptcy Attorney
Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece by George Mason University law professor Todd Zywicki entitled Dodd-Frank and the Return of the Loan Shark. If you do not subscribe to the Wall Street Journal, you can read more about this topic from Professor Zywicki by clicking on the link. The gist of Professor Zywicki’s [...]
On more than one occasion, I have represented individuals in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases when the debt that prompted the filing was wholly or in large part co-signed debt. It seems that underwriting standards for most large loans have become tighter and nowhere is this more true than in the case of [...]
Season’s Greetings – and a word of caution. This is a wonderful time of year, a time for giving thanks, for counting blessings, for sharing joy and for giving to others. The natural desire to express our love through gifts burns strong in our hearts (and the fire is stoked by incessant advertising.) This year, [...]
I recently received the following question from a reader of my Atlanta bankruptcy law web site: I live in Georgia. If my 1st mortgage goes to foreclosure, what happens to my second mortgage? Here are my thoughts: if the holder of a first (or senior) mortgage forecloses, all junior mortgage liens are wiped out. However, [...]
A little over a year ago, Bankruptcy Law Network contributor Cathy Moran wrote a post on this blog about the 9th Circuit’s decision in the MBNA v. Ransom case. At issue was the question of whether an above-median debtor could claim the “ownership deduction” in a means test calculation even if that debtor owned his [...]
