Perhaps the most significant change to the Bankruptcy Code that came out of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 ( BAPCPA) was the addition of what is referred to as the “Means Test.” The Means Test is a calculation based upon your income and allowed monthly expenses that is used to determine whether [...]
Chapter 13
One of the major benefits of Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is the ability to avoid second mortgages that are not secured by any value in your home. By following standards outlined in the Bankruptcy Code, you can reclassify that loan on your home into the same category as credit cards or other ordinary bills and discharge them [...]
We all know that individual tax returns are due on April 15 (or a day or two later if April 15 is on a weekend). But Congress inserted a little tax time craziness into sections 1308 and 1307 of the new and drastically unimproved Bankruptcy Code of 2005. Section 1308(a) states: (a) Not later than [...]
Bankruptcy! I don’t want to file bankruptcy! Hey, if you do want to file, there is something wrong with you. But you want to keep your house? Avoid foreclosure? Which option hurts more: losing your home, or, filing bankruptcy? We humans make decisions based on our emotions: we shy away (or run, if you are [...]
Filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy can get your Driver’s License back for you when you have lost your license because of no have insurance! Many States require people that own cars to have motor vehicle liability insurance. These laws, often called compulsory motor vehicle liability laws, generally require that if you own a car, that [...]
I wrote about attorney fees as a means test deduction some time ago. BAPCPA’s provision, codified at section 707(a)(2)(A)(iv) of the Bankruptcy Code, says that priority claims are deducted from income. Priority claims include a Chapter 13 debtor’s counsel’s fees. See sections 507(2), 503(b)(2), and 330(a)(4)(B). Therefore, our attorney fees are a means test deduction. Oddly, the [...]
