The 2005 bankruptcy law changes require all debt relief agents (lawyers) to give every potential client certain notices, the third one warns against fraud and concealment.  Bankruptcy debtors must tell the truth by listing all their debts, income, assets and expenses, but they always had to do that, and the law didn’t add.
By signing the [...]

That is the guess of  a Washington Think tank based on the Case-Shiller home price index, as reported in today’s Los Angeles Times.
Supposedly, this will complete the deflation of the housing bubble started by Mr. Greenspan.
This will put more homes underwater, worth less than the amount of the mortgages borrowed against the house.
This writer has [...]

When filing a personal chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy, most debtors are concerned about the effect the bankruptcy filing might have on their checking and savings accounts. After all, many debtors have banked at the same institution for years, and they do not want to have this banking relationship disrupted. This concern, [...]

As the Fed has pumped up the money supply, prices are inevitably rising.
Gas, now food, increasing first.
With mortgage-home equity borrowing having dried up, it seems people are using credit card debt to make up the difference.
This is not a good strategy. You cannot borrow your way out of a [...]

In most cases, No.  In most cases, the value of the car is significantly lower than the debt against it.  Sort of like our housing market……and look at the mess thats causing in real estate since values are now less than the loans securing it!  So if you don’t want to go bust like all [...]

Before you sign your bankruptcy petition, you must review all of the schedules for accuracy.  One of the schedules, called “Schedule J - Current Expenditures of Individual Debtor(s)” is where your monthly expenses are listed.  If there is one place on the bankruptcy petition that my clients consistently get wrong, it is on “Schedule J”.
Very [...]

As you probably know, there are companies that gather information about the history of your payments on your credit obligation.  These are called Credit Bureaus, and they not only gather your information, but they also report this information to anyone who pays for it, including your creditors, potential employers, landlords and insurance companies.
The three credit [...]

Each of us has our own goals as to how much we would like to have set aside for retirement.  There are a variety of retirement plans available.  Some are sponsored by employers and others are more individual.
Employer-sponsored plans include:

401(k) plans are offered by employers to their employees.  401(k) plans allow you to withhold from [...]

Why should your tax returns be affected if your spouse files a bankruptcy?  If you file a separate tax return from your spouse, there should be no effect at all.  If you file a joint tax return, however, you should be aware of the following:
1.  Your last (if joint) tax return must be sent to [...]

This blog has consistently railed against bailing out the banks and mortgage companies that caused the sub-prime crisis, now spreading throughout the world economy.
As panic slowly spreads, the calls from the banks and mortgage companies for Federal money become deafening.
“Too big to fail” is one of the arguments for helping [...]