Category Archives: Secured loans

Bankruptcy clients: not all of your creditors send you a bill!

By doug | Published: January 29, 2011

As a corollary to the idea that you may have more creditors than you think, prospective bankruptcy filers need to check to see if they have creditors who aren’t sending them a bill every month. The most likely place to look for these low lying creditors is in the realm of liens filed against the […]

Posted in Secured loans | Comments closed

Is there ever a good reason for reaffirming a debt?

By doug | Published: September 14, 2010

After filing a bankruptcy petition, debtors should not be surprised if they are approached (through their attorney) about signing a reaffirmation agreement with one or more creditors. Simply put, a reaffirmation agreement is an agreement to pay an existing debt despite the bankruptcy. Most attorneys and quite a few bankruptcy judges are leery of encouraging […]

Also posted in Foreclosure, Practical tips | Comments closed

Should you re-affirm a mortgage or simply stay-and-pay?

By doug | Published: August 31, 2010

Many if not most homeowners who have to file for bankruptcy would like to stay in their homes, if possible. Sometimes staying put is even the primary, or only, reason for filing the case in the first place. If a homeowner is current on their mortgage, keeping the house will not be a problem. One […]

Also posted in Real estate | Comments closed

Don’t think your bank is your friend when you file for bankruptcy

By doug | Published: May 21, 2010

California bankruptcy guru Cathy Moran makes a good point: although many consumers have personal relationships with their banks, and sometimes some good feeling for the institution, your bank is not necessarily your friend when you are filing for bankruptcy. The principal problem is that banks have a legal right of “setoff,” meaning that they can […]

Also posted in Practical tips | Comments closed

What is the bankruptcy exemption for an automobile?

By doug | Published: March 8, 2010

Many persons contemplating bankruptcy wonder about the effect of filing a bankruptcy case on the car (or cars) that they own. Starting April 1st, the federal bankruptcy exemption for equity in an automobile will be raised to $3400. (Until then, it is slightly less). Please remember that this exemption only applies to your equity interest […]

Also posted in The Bankruptcy Code | Comments closed

Liens and the Massachusetts homestead exemption

By doug | Published: February 2, 2010

Massachsetts homeowners are lucky enough to be protected by the Commonwealth’s generous homestead law, which typically will allow them to retain up to $500,000 in home equity even if their finances deteriorate to the point they have to file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. A question that frequently comes up in the […]

Also posted in Chapter 7, Real estate | Comments closed

So you want to get rid of your car?

By doug | Published: January 24, 2010

Not everyone is enamored with that All-American love for the motorcar, treating the machine in the driveway like a pet or a member of the family. Especially if it comes with a whopper monthly payment, or worse yet, periodically doesn’t run. While it is nowhere as common as the alternative, a few bankruptcy clients want […]

Posted in Secured loans | Comments closed

So you want to keep your car?

By doug | Published: January 22, 2010

Thinking about filing for bankruptcy, but worried that if you do, the “authorities” will leave you without a ride? For the most part, those fears are unrealistic. The people you see walking home from the courthouse have DUI’s, not bankruptcies. If you have a car with an outstanding loan (or cars with loans), and you […]

Posted in Secured loans | Comments closed
Call now: (978) 975 - 2608