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Bankruptcy

Save Money in Chapter 13 by Ferreting Out Tax Deductions From Payments

Usually debtors in chapter 13 New York bankruptcy concern themselves with what happens to their tax refunds, which trustees will keep for the creditors, but there’s another way the tax code intersects with bankruptcy—but this time to the advantage of debtors: deductions. The reason tax deductions can make a difference for debtors in chapter 13 …

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5 Advantages Chapter 13 Provides to Homeowners

So there’s research showing that filing chapter 13 New York bankruptcy may reduce mortality rates and delay or prevent foreclosure. How exactly does it accomplish this, and how can it best be used to debtors’ advantages? First of all, like other chapters, upon filing chapter 13 bankruptcy, a debtor is immediately protected by the automatic …

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4 Debts That Are Subject to Income Tax Refund Offsets

The topic of income tax refunds comes up periodically in New York bankruptcy. It’s important because in chapter 13 cases, New York trustees will demand the full refund to repay the creditors, and in chapter 7 it’s an asset that will be taken by the trustee if the debtor can’t protect it with an exemption. …

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CFPB Finds That Few Americans ‘Shop’ for Mortgages

One reason people find themselves in New York bankruptcy is that the interest rates on their debts are too high, which raises their monthly payments needlessly.Hopefully this is common sense, but according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) many Americans don’t consider interest rates when buying homes. Specifically, they don’t “shop” for mortgages, often …

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What Are ‘Domestic Support Obligations’?

I recently wrote about priority claims in New York bankruptcy, and notably, the types of claims with the highest priority are called “domestic support obligations.” Readers probably have a fairly good idea of what these might entail, but the role the play in bankruptcy isn’t so obvious. Because bankruptcies often coincide with divorces, they are …

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Alternatives to Chapter 13 After Discharging an Underwater Mortgage

Liens on underwater junior mortgages survive chapter 7 New York bankruptcy, which means homeowners will need to keep paying them to prevent foreclosure. Often, the response is to file a chapter 13 case after the chapter 7 one to strip the lien, but there are reasons to be cautious about taking that course of action. …

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Treasury and IRS Clamp Down On Nonprofit Hospital Debt Collections

Even after the Affordable Care Act, hospital bills are still a big enough problem that they can only be solved with a New York bankruptcy filing. Somewhat surprisingly, hospitals, even nonprofit ones that are supposed to have charitable purposes, have turned to hiring debt collectors to compel payment from patients who are behind on their …

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What Are ‘Priority Claims’?

New York bankruptcy requires debtors to pay some creditors what they are owed before others. These are called “priority claims” or “priorities” in the Bankruptcy Code. In chapter 13, for instance, creditors with priority claims must be repaid in full. Consequently, it’s important for debtors to have an idea of what these kinds of claims …

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‘Avoiding’ Liens in New York Bankruptcy

Most of the time when the term “avoid” comes up in New York bankruptcy it’s used in the context of preferential transfers to creditors. That is, the debtor transfers money to a creditor he or she likes more than the others, such as a relative, and the trustee chooses to nullify (“avoid”) the transfer. The …

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