Category Archives: Bankruptcy News

In Massachusetts, foreclosures track bankruptcies and post large increase

By doug | Published: May 20, 2010

Hard on the heels of the news that bankruptcy filings in Massachusetts soared in the period ending March 31, comes the kicker — foreclosure rates in the state swelled almost 80 percent in April. This didn’t surprise housing advocates and professionals, who are seeing more homeowners struggling to pay mortgages because they have been out […]

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Bankruptcy filings soar in Massachusetts

By doug | Published: May 17, 2010

The news is in — bankruptcy filings in Massachusetts and in the nation as a whole are going up. Way, way up. The federal court system counted a 30 percent increase in bankruptcy filings in Massachusetts for the 12 months ending on March 31st. Nationally, a 27 percent increase was recorded. What should anyone make […]

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Senate approves measure cutting debit card fees

By doug | Published: May 14, 2010

The United States Senate approved a bill this morning that would place new limits on what processing companies can charge for debit card transactions. Illinois senator Richard Durbin’s plan forces the Federal Reserve to ensure the fees that credit card companies charge for debit card use are proportional to the costs of processing the transaction. […]

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Massachusetts residents swimming in debt

By doug | Published: May 14, 2010

People who live in the Boston, Massachusetts area have plenty of debt — on average, about $24,670 — but that pales in comparison to some other parts of America. This news comes from the Experian credit rating agency, which reviewed relative debt levels in twenty large metropolitan areas. Seattle residents accumulated the most debts, averaging […]

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Mortgage bailout looms as Massachusetts mortgage and bankruptcy crisis rolls on

By doug | Published: May 6, 2010

Today’s news includes the nugget that “Freddie Mac,” the quasi-private packager of home mortgage loans for resale to the financial markets, is begging Congress for another $10.6 billion dollar bailout. This would be on top of $50.7 billion the federal government has already pumped in to the troubled mortgage giant. Meanwhile, the average consumer is […]

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A new assault on high credit card fees

By doug | Published: May 5, 2010

Two US Senators are sponsoring legislation that would allow merchants to get around the 2% commission that MasterCard and Visa charge them for credit card sales. Under the proposal by Vermont senator Patrick Leahy and Illinois senator Dick Durbin, stores would be able to legally offer consumers discounts for using cash or an in-store credit […]

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New Massachusetts bankruptcy judge says no to trustee-paid claims

By doug | Published: May 4, 2010

The first written opinion by the newest Massachusetts bankruptcy judge is of interest to Chapter 13 debtors and Massachusetts bankruptcy attorneys. In the Pearson case, judge Melvin Hoffman struck down a provision in a debtor’s Chapter 13 plan that would have provided for administrative claims to be paid by the trustee out of the plan […]

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Foreclosure rates soar in Massachusetts

By doug | Published: April 23, 2010

Monthly figures released for March 2010 show the number of foreclosure cases in Massachusetts surging, rather than abating. Foreclosure petitions, filed at the start of the process while the owners are typically still using their property, increased 21.6% in March according to data compiled by the Warren Group and publicized in the Boston Globe. Foreclosure […]

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Filing for bankruptcy in Massachusetts — an example of what not to do

By doug | Published: April 22, 2010

A recent decision by a Massachusetts bankruptcy judge highlights a textbook example of what not to do when filing a consumer bankruptcy case. The end result was a somewhat unusual and extreme order retroactively revoking a Chapter 7 debtor’s bankruptcy discharge. Judge William C. Hillman found that the debtor submitted multiple false statements when she […]

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Divorced debtor loses homestead rights in New Hampshire

By doug | Published: April 19, 2010

A homeowner whose divorce was final before he filed for bankruptcy can’t claim a homestead exemption when the property was sold and he received half the proceeds, according to a recent ruling of the Bankruptcy Court in New Hampshire in the Visconti case. The debtor lived in Hampstead in 2007 when he conveyed his interest […]

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