Technology is now making it harder for debtors to keep their hands on their vehicles, according to recent a Washington Post article on auto repossessions. The topic is similar to a post I wrote last year about lenders tracking and disabling vehicles, even though their owners hadn’t defaulted on their loans. In that article, the …
Repossession Companies Now Tracking Cars Everywhere Read More »
This generation of elderly Americans is the wealthiest ever, and that means criminals look at them as easy marks for financial scams. Losing all of one’s (or one’s parent’s) wealth to a scammer is heartbreaking and often difficult to reverse. It’s possible to lose substantial assets to a financial scheme, so protecting oneself by knowing …
Avoid Scams Targeting the Elderly, Avoid Unnecessary Bankruptcy Read More »
Bankruptcy is a powerful option for improving one’s finances, but there are alternatives to struggling debtors. Some cater to homeowners, like short-selling, refinancing, or offering the deed in lieu of foreclosure. Others are oriented to debtors generally, like advice for tightening up one’s finances. However, these don’t quite answer the question of when doing nothing …
When Is Doing Nothing About a Debt the Best Option? Read More »
New York bankruptcy is full of jargon as one might expect, so debtors might be tripped up when they hear some of its terminology that doesn’t always mean what it sounds like. Take for example “no-asset bankruptcy” or “no-asset case.” This term sounds like situations in which debtors have no property at all to their …
I’ve discussed previously about how New York bankruptcy can help people live longer, and it’s motivated me to continue watching out for academic studies on how losing income or wealth affects people. The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) produced one such study that purports to be the first of its kind: Tracking the …
Study: Sudden Loss of Wealth Linked to Early Death Read More »
Home values can rise quickly, and while most homeowners like that just fine, it’s usually not a good thing for New York bankruptcy debtors, particularly those with underwater junior mortgages on their primary residences. The consequences can affect consumer debtors in all chapters, and it they can eliminate the advantage to filing in chapter 13 …
Rising Home Values Don’t Help Bankruptcy Debtors Read More »
The means test applies strict rules for debtors filing bankruptcy in chapter 7—but not all debtors. Specifically, section 707(1)(b) of the Bankruptcy Code authorizes creditors, trustees, or parties in interest to move the bankruptcy court to dismiss cases filed by debtors whose debts are “primarily consumer debts.” What kind of debts is the statute referring …
Bankruptcy is a technical process that assumes everyone working within it is mostly rational. To the extent that it expects parties to deviate from irrational behavior, the Bankruptcy Code and its accompanying rules include incentives to keep parties in line. Creditors are usually large and impersonal, and they rarely care if their debtors file bankruptcy. …
Bankruptcy May Not Rescue You From Vicious Personal Disputes Read More »
Among the many steps I recommend taking before filing bankruptcy, two of them were looking at your bank’s policies in case they freeze accounts, and considering changing banks. Another reason debtors should consider these courses of action, especially before bankruptcy, is “setoffs.” What are these, and how do they intersect with New York bankruptcy? When …
What Is a Bank ‘Setoff’ and How Do They Affect Bankruptcy? Read More »
Short-selling an underwater home is frequently touted as an alternative to New York bankruptcy, but sometimes the two go together. Debtors might find it dispiriting to hear that solving their mortgage problems might require two bureaucratic processes, but knowing how short sales and bankruptcy intersect can help debtors decide whether it’s necessary to take both …
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