The Timing of Your Bankruptcy Filing Counts

Will you receive your tax refund before or after you file bankruptcy? Timing is important in your bankruptcy case and must be fully analyzed by a qualified bankruptcy attorney.

Timing matters for many bankruptcy issues such as:

• Keeping your tax return (as we discuss more below)

• Creditor harassment

• Garnishments

• Pending Liens

• Foreclosure proceedings

• Exemptions

• Repayment of loans to loved ones

• Lawsuits

• Qualifying for bankruptcy

Filing Bankruptcy after You Have Your Tax Return

If you file for bankruptcy after you’ve received your tax refund, your bankruptcy attorney can show you how to protect it through the purchase of exempt assets.

Exempt assets include a certain amount of equity in your house, car, jewelry, tools, and personal items. You can put your tax return into these exempt assets to protect it; exemptions all have set maximum levels that can be protected, so be careful not to exceed those levels.

Filing Bankruptcy before You Have Your Tax Refund

If you file bankruptcy before you have your tax refund, the bankruptcy trustee may attach it. The trustee may also attach any funds you’ve pre-paid or over-paid in the current tax year.

Where to Get Help Knowing When to File Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy, and the timing of filing, is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people like you. We focus our practice on bankruptcy law and help people just like you. You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com.

We will gently walk you through the bankruptcy process, answer your questions, analyze your case, and aggressively fight for your legal rights. We look forward to your call, email or completing the form below.

Most folks are happy to learn that whether they file Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, many belongings can be protected.

· Chapter 7 bankruptcy allows your belongings to be protected through exemptions. In fact, the vast majority of people, who file Chapter 7 bankruptcy, keep all of their belongings and assets.

· Chapter 13 bankruptcy allows you to keep whatever belongings you can continue to pay for.

If you have assets that don’t qualify with an exemption, a qualified bankruptcy attorney can show you how to protect them.

· Proper, lawful, pre-bankruptcy planning can help you keep more assets, and keep you from having problems with the trustee because of well intentioned mistakes.

· In addition, your bankruptcy attorney can show you how to pay the bankruptcy trustee so you can keep something of sentimental value or financial worth. For example, if your house has more value than is exempt, you can pay the difference between the exempt amount and the fair market value, allowing you to keep your home.

However, if you don’t have the cash to pay the difference (equity – exemption), or if you can’t make-up past and make future payments, you’ll need to turn the asset over to the bankruptcy trustee. This sometimes happens when people own expensive cars or houses.

Where to Get Help Protecting Your Belongings during Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy, and protecting your belongings, is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people like you. We focus our practice on bankruptcy law and help people just like you, every day. You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com.

We will gently walk you through the bankruptcy process, answer your questions, analyze your case, aggressively fight for your legal rights, and protect your belongings. Your next step is to contact our office. We look forward to your call, email or completing the form below.

If you can make future payments and you’re current with your mortgage, surrender is not necessary, even if you file bankruptcy.  Many people go through bankruptcy and keep their house; others don’t.  Whether you keep your house or not depends upon whether you can make the mortgage payments.

Is Surrender the Same as Foreclosure?

Surrender is similar to, but not the same as, foreclosure.  Foreclosure is outside the bankruptcy process; whereas, surrender may be part of the bankruptcy process.  In addition, the financial consequences of surrender versus foreclosure are likely huge.

Can’t I Just Move Out of My House?

Neither moving out of your house nor filing bankruptcy takes your name off the deed.  Even if you move out, file bankruptcy, and stop making payments, you still own the house, until it’s surrendered.

Surrendering is a legal procedure which takes your name off the deed and puts the lender’s name on the deed.  Only then can the lender sell the property to recoup the money loaned to you.

How Surrender Works

• You file bankruptcy.  When the Bankruptcy Court accepts your petition, it issues an automatic “stay.”

• The mortgage holder will file a “Motion for Relief from Stay,” so it can move forward with taking back your house.

• Three weeks later (or longer), the mortgage holder will receive an “Order Lifting the Automatic Stay” from the court.

• The mortgage holder must then give you 90 days notice of its intent to take your house.

Why Should I Surrender My House?

Often clients ask why they should surrender their house and not just wait for the mortgage holder to foreclose.  The benefit to surrender, which is part of the bankruptcy process, is that you don’t have to pay the deficiency.

The deficiency is the difference between what you owe on the house and what the mortgage holder received when it sold the property.  In today’s economy, this is likely thousands and thousands of dollars.  On the other hand, if the mortgage holder forecloses on your property, you still owe this difference.

Where Do I Get Help Surrendering My House?

Surrendering your house and bankruptcy are specialized areas of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy.  We focus our practice on bankruptcy law and help people just like you.  You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com.

We will gently walk you through how to surrender your house so you don’t owe a deficiency and stress is reduced, to the full extent possible.  We look forward to your call or email.

 If you’re like most small business owners, you need your business’ future income to make your fresh start a success.  It may surprise you to know that a qualified bankruptcy attorney may advise you to take a vacation before your business files bankruptcy, instead of keeping your shoulder to the grindstone.

Why?  It seems counterintuitive.  After all, if you’re contemplating bankruptcy, you need all the income you can get.

Here’s why.  Any income that is owed to you, when you file bankruptcy, will be taken by the bankruptcy trustee and will be given to your creditors.  So, don’t create excess income.   Instead, let any income pay fixed expenses such salaries, rent, insurance, mortgage, equipment leases, and memberships.

Wait until after you filed bankruptcy to generate income.  You need that income to make a go of it, after bankruptcy.  Here’s how it works.

As part of your small business bankruptcy petition, you must provide details on all business assets, accounts receivables, and unbilled work in progress.  The bankruptcy trustee will try to collect monies from accounts receivables using a demand letter; demand letters are successful in collecting monies already owed to you.  The trustee gives the money to your creditors.   (The trustee will also try to collect unbilled work in progress; collecting for unbilled work isn’t usually successful until the work has been completed.)

Don’t be afraid to take a break; if your business keeps functioning as is, you’ll lose accounts receivables to your creditors; this means that you won’t have that income to keep your business going when you come out of bankruptcy.

If you notify your clients ahead of time, they are likely to understand.  Explain that because of the current economic situation, your business needs to reorganize.  Further explain that their work will get done and give them a date when it will be completed.  Set appropriate expectations.

Your qualified small business bankruptcy lawyers can give you exact timing of work stoppage and explain how to use any income that comes in before filing bankruptcy, how to communicate with your clients, and how to use bankruptcy’s fresh start to have a successful future.

Where Do I Get Help Filing Bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy.  We focus our practice on bankruptcy law and help people just like you.  You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com. 

We will gently walk you through the bankruptcy process, answer your questions, analyze your case, and aggressively fight for your legal rights.  We look forward to your call or email.

What is foreclosure?

Foreclosure is a legal process through which a lender, such as a bank or mortgage company, legally regains title to and possession of a home because the mortgage hasn’t been paid. 

In November 2011, federal bank regulators announced a program that will compensate possibly millions of families who, improperly, lost their homes, for mistakes made by loan servicers during the foreclosure process. 

There is no fee to participate in the foreclosure review process.

Are you eligible for compensation due to improper foreclosure?

1. Check IndependentForeclosureReview.com to see if you’re eligible. 

You’re eligible to have your mortgage and foreclosure documents reviewed if your mortgage was handled by one of the listed mortgage servicers. 

In addition, qualified families will receive written notice of their right to review, by the end of 2011.

1. If you are eligible, you MUST apply for review (of your mortgage and foreclosure documents) by the end of April 2012.
2.  If mistakes are found, you may receive financial compensation.

Examples of Mistakes or Misrepresentations in Mortgage Documents and the Foreclosure Process

The mistakes and misrepresentations in the housing lending business have been egregious.  For example, Bank of America tried to foreclose on a family that had no mortgage; it was paid in full.  Furthermore, the family had never had a mortgage with Bank of America.

Other examples:

1.       Robo-signing

2.       Inappropriate fees

3.       Miscalculated fees

4.       Foreclosure during bankruptcy protection

5.       Foreclosure during mortgage modification negotiations

Where do I get help stopping foreclosure or filing Bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy (and stopping foreclosure) is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people like you.  We focus our practice on bankruptcy law, stopping foreclosures, dischargeable debts, and help people just like you.  We’ll answer your questions and guide you to a fresh start, clean slate.  You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com.  We will gently walk you through the bankruptcy process, answer your questions, analyze your case, and aggressively fight for your legal rights.  Your next step is to contact our office so we can help you.  We look forward to your call or email. 

The Meeting of Creditors will likely just be you, your bankruptcy attorney, and the bankruptcy trustee.  There may be other people in the room, but they’re just waiting for their turn and aren’t at the table.  The trustee will likely ask you questions such as “Have you paid more to one creditor than another creditor?”  “Did you redo your kitchen or bathroom in the last three years?”  “Is your bankruptcy petition accurate?”  In most cases, the Meeting of Creditors is a formality and Bank of America, Citibank, and Discover Card don’t bother showing up.  They’ve already written off the debt and are busy raising interest rates and fees on other customers.

On the other hand, if you’ve personally insulted an ex-spouse, friend, father-in-law, or business partner, that personal creditor may show up to voice his or her anger and frustration.  If you haven’t paid back a loan to someone you have a personal relationship with, they will feel angry, hurt, frustrated, and insulted.  When individuals aren’t paid back, they take it personally.  Bank of American is not personally insulted.

Your personal creditors, in addition, can file an objection to discharge of a debt under Section 523 of the Bankruptcy Code.  However, neither filing this exception nor venting at the Meeting of creditors will likely be successful.

However, if your personal creditor (or someone else that you’ve made angry) has information that could jeopardize your bankruptcy filing, beware.  Trustees take letters, from insiders about your inaccurate bankruptcy petition, very seriously.

If you are interested we have a video the bankruptcy court made in regards to the 341 meeting.  To see this video please click here.  If you would like to know more about the types of questions the Trustee will ask please click here.

Where do I get help filing Bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people like you.  We do focus our practice on bankruptcy law and help people just like you every day.  You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com.

We will gently walk you through the bankruptcy process, answer your questions, analyze your case, and aggressively fight for your legal rights.  We will stand by your through the Meeting of Creditors and throughout the entire bankruptcy process.  Your next step is to contact our Ohio bankruptcy office; we look forward to your call or email.

A credit card is often prefered because the use of debit cards is not recommended online.  If someone misuses your credit card information, your liability is limited to $50; if someone misuses your debit card, your liability is everything you have in your account.

Likely, most, if not all, credit card companies will cancel your credit card and close your account the moment they receive notice of your bankruptcy, even those with whom you don’t have a balance.  Credit card companies that you list as having a balance (and you MUST list them all), will receive the automatic stay informing them they no longer may attempt to collect the balance due.  However, even zero balance cards will review your credit report on a regular basis and will, likely, cancel your card and account.  At the creditor’s total discretion, you may be able to keep a card through a chapter 7 bankruptcy, but this is highly unlikely.  Remember that in a chapter 13 bankruptcy you cannot incur new debt (above a certain amount) without court approval.

After bankruptcy to be able to function in today’s virtual world, you’ll likely need a credit card.  Be careful to only charge what you can pay off that month and only use the card when necessary.  You may be able to qualify for a low limit credit card after your bankruptcy is completed.

An additional alternative is to use a secured credit card as you rebuild your credit rating.  This isn’t really a credit card at all.  It’s a card which is used as a credit card and subtracts from your deposit as you make purchases.  For example, you deposit $500 on the secured card and purchase $30 domain names for your website or pay $25 to register with a freelance website to work online. 

With both unsecured and secured credit cards, understand the associated fees and interest rates.  Credit card companies are predatory and, likely, played a role in forcing you into bankruptcy, in the first place.

Where to Get Help with Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people in financial trouble.  We focus our practice on bankruptcy law and helping people just like you.  You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com. 

We will gently walk you through the bankruptcy process, answer your questions, analyze your case, and aggressively fight for your legal rights.  Your next step is to contact our Ohio bankruptcy office and we’ll stop the harassing phone calls.

Dealing with the bankruptcy process and the bankruptcy court is nothing like the courtroom scenes you see in movies or television.  It’s nothing like a John Grisham book; there is no trial with a judge or jury pronouncing you guilty or not guilty.  Instead, bankruptcy is a matter of follow the procedures.

If you disclose all of the requested information, provide documentation, follow the procedures, and work with a qualified bankruptcy attorney, your case will be successful.  For example, we’ve handled more than a thousand bankruptcy cases and our clients have been granted bankruptcy protection.

The Keys to a Successful Bankruptcy Case

• ·         Hire a qualified bankruptcy attorney who focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people in your situation.  General practice attorneys are a “jack of all trades, master of none.”  Their focus and knowledge base is distracted by many different areas of law and cases. 
• ·         Answer all the bankruptcy attorney’s questions (written and oral) truthfully and fully.  Don’t withhold any information, even if you think it will hurt your case.  If in doubt, always share any and all information.  Your attorney can only give you good legal advice if he has all of the facts.
• ·         Provide all financial documentation and list all creditors, even family members and friends.  Let your attorney know if you’ve repaid any debts recently.
• ·         Follow your attorney’s legal advice; don’t follow the advice of debt consolidation services, creditors, friends, family, or neighbors.  Your attorney is the only one who knows all the facts in your case and who focuses on bankruptcy law Monday through Sunday, each week.

Where to Get Help with Bankruptcy Proceedings

Bankruptcy is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people like you.  We focus our practice on bankruptcy law and helping people just like you.  You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com. 

We will gently walk you through the bankruptcy process, answer your questions, analyze your case, and aggressively fight for your legal rights.  Your next step is to contact our office and we’ll guide you to a successful bankruptcy case.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that the court can send you to jail if you are in contempt of court for something other than not paying your debts. This means that you can be sent to jail if you don’t do what the court says, such as show up in court at an assigned time. While you can ignore creditors and you won’t go to jail; you cannot ignore the court. Ignoring the court will, likely, result in jail time.

For example, if a creditor gets a judgment against you, that creditor can request information about your assets and income via the court. As a result, the court will issue an Order to Appear at a Debtor’s Exam. Show up or you’ll, likely, go to jail.

While the court can’t send you to jail for not paying your bills, they can allow the creditor to try to collect on your debt. To avoid having a judgment filed against you, wage garnishment, interest on your debt assessed, property seizure, a lien on your home or business real property, and other creditor harassment and attempts to collect on your debts, you can file bankruptcy.

The court will issue an automatic stay the moment your bankruptcy petition is accepted. This stops all the stressful collection efforts. To determine whether bankruptcy is a solution to your debt problems, consult with a qualified Ohio bankruptcy attorney.

Where do I get help filing Bankruptcy in Ohio?

Bankruptcy is a very specialized area of law; be sure your attorney focuses his or her practice on bankruptcy and helping people like you. We focus our practice on bankruptcy law and help people just like you. You can reach us at 513-793-6555 or Thomasjr@geygan.com.

We will analyze your case, answer your questions, walk you through the bankruptcy process, and aggressively fight for your legal rights. We look forward to your call or email in our Ohio bankruptcy law office.

De acuerdo con § 342(b) del Código de Quiebras, esta notificación: (1) Describe brevemente los servicios disponibles por agencias de consejería de crédito; (2) Describe brevemente los propósitos, beneficios y costos de los 4 tipos de procedimientos de quiebras que pueden comenzarse; e (3) Informa sobre los delitos de quiebra y le notifica que el Procurador General puede examinar toda la información que usted suministre en sul caso de quiebra.

1. Servicios Disponibles por Agencias de Consejería de Crédito

Con limitadas excepciones, § 109(h) del Código de Quiebras requiere que todos los deudores individuales que radiquen una petición en quiebra en o después del 17 de octubre de 2005, recibirán un curso donde le explicaran las oportunidades disponibles para conserjería de crédito y proveerán asistencia en cuanto a realizar un análisis presupuestario. El curso deberá tomarse dentro de los 180 días antes de la radicación de la quiebra.  El curso será provisto individualmente o en grupo (incluyendo cursos conducidos vía telefónica o a través del internet) y deberá ser provisto por una agencia de conserjería de crédito sin fines de lucro aprobada por el Sindico de los Estados Unidos o el administrador de quiebra.  El secretario de la corte de quiebra tiene una lista que podrá consultar sobre las mencionadas agencias de conserjería de crédito.

En adición, luego de radicar la petición de quiebras, el deudor individual generalmente deberá completar un curso instructivo sobre manejo financiero antes de que pueda recibir el descargo.  El secretario también tiene una lista de los cursos aprobados sobre manejo financiero.

2. Los Cuatro Capítulos del Código de Quiebras Disponible para Deudores Individuales

Capitulo 7: Liquidación

1. El Capitulo 7 esta diseñado para deudores con dificultad financiera que no tienen la capacidad de pagar sus deudas existentes.  Los deudores cuyas deudas sean principalmente de consumo están sujetos a un “means test” diseñado para determinar si se permitirá que el caso sea procesado bajo este capítulo.  Si su ingreso es mayor que el ingreso promedio del estado en el que reside y según el número de personas en su hogar, sus acreedores podrán solicitar a la corte que se desestime su caso bajo la §707(b) del Código de Quiebra.  Quedará a discreción de la corte decidir si el caso deberá o no ser desestimado.

2. Bajo un Capítulo 7, podrá reclamar ciertas propiedades como exentas bajo la ley actual. Un síndico podrá tomar posesión y vender el remanente de las propiedades no exentas y distribuir la ganancia de la venta a sus acreedores.

3. El propósito de radicar un caso bajo el Capítulo 7 es obtener, en su día, un relevo de sus deudas existentes.  Si se determina que usted haya cometido algún tipo de conducta impropia descrita en el Código de Quiebra, la corte podrá denegarle el descargo o relevo de sus deudas, y de hacerlo, el propósito por el cual usted radicó la petición de quiebra se derrotaría.

4. Si usted recibe el descargo o relevo general de sus deudas, algunas deudas particulares no son descargables bajo la ley.  Usted continuara siendo responsable por los impuestos y préstamos estudiantiles, deudas incurridas para pagar impuestos, manutención de hijos menores de edad y obligaciones para dividir participaciones en propiedades, fianzas, penalidades y obligaciones de restitución criminal; deudas omitidas en la quiebra y deudas por muerte o danos personales causados mientras opere un vehículo de motor, nave o aeronave bajo los efectos de bebidas alcohólicas o drogas. También podrán exceptuarse del descargo deudas donde el acreedor pueda probar que la deuda proviene de fraude, incumplimiento a un deber fiduciario, robo o alguna injuria premeditada o maliciosa.

Capítulo 13: Repago de Todo o Parte de las Deudas de un Individuo con Ingreso Regular

1. El Capítulo 13 está diseñado para individuos con un ingreso regular que desean pagar todo o parte de sus deudas en mensualidades por un periodo de tiempo.  Usted será elegible bajo un Capítulo 13 si sus deudas no exceden cierta cantidad de dólares establecida en el Código de Quiebra.

2. Bajo un Capítulo 13, usted debe radicar un plan para pagar a sus acreedores todo o parte del dinero que les debe, utilizando ganancias o ingresos futuros.  El período permitido por la corte para pagar sus deudas será de 3 o 5 años, dependiendo de su ingreso y de otros factores.  La corte deberá aprobar  o confirmar su plan de ser aceptable y que confirme con los requisitos de ley.

3. Después de completar los pagos bajo su plan, sus deudas son generalmente descargadas excepto las obligaciones para manutención domestico, algunos prestamos estudiantiles; algunos impuestos; algunas fianzas criminales y obligaciones de restitución, ciertas deudas que no hayan sido incluidas en la documentación o listados de la quiebra, ciertas deudas por actos que hayan causado muerte o danos personales, y ciertas obligaciones aseguradas a largo plazo.

Capitulo 11: Reorganización

El Capitulo 11 está diseñado para la reorganización de un negocio pero también esta disponible para deudores de consumo.  Sus disposiciones son mas complejas, y cualquier decisión de un individuo para radicar un Capitulo 11 deberá ser revisada por un abogado.

Capitulo 12: Agricultores o Pescadores

El Capitulo 12 esta diseñado para permitir que los agricultores o pescadores puedan pagar sus deudas en un periodo de tiempo con ganancias futuras, es similar a un Capitulo 13.  Los requisitos de elegibilidad son restrictivos, limitando su uso a aquellos cuyo ingreso proviene primariamente de agricultura u operaciones de pesca.

3. Delitos de Quiebra y Disponibilidad de Documentos de Quiebra para Oficiales de Law Enforcement

Una persona que, a sabiendas y fraudulentamente, esconda propiedades o mienta bajo juramento o so pena de perjurio,  ya sea verbalmente o por escrito, en conexión con un caso de quiebra, esta sujeto a multa, prisión o ambas.