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 …
Short answer: Usually not. Longer answer: Let’s start with what a reaffirmation agreement is. A creditor may ask a debtor in a New York bankruptcy to sign a reaffirmation agreement to renew the debt related to a secured asset. The creditor’s goal is simple: making money off the debtor in exchange for probably nothing. To …
Should You Sign That Reaffirmation Agreement With That Creditor? Read More »
In late December I wrote a pair of posts on the 2016 Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act Report (BAPCPA Report) that tried to illustrate who chapter 13 bankruptcy debtors are. Although the BAPCPA Report contains several tables for chapter 13, I skipped Table 5, which concerns property valuation orders. In 2016, these orders …
Do you have financial problems? Do you tend to ask your friends for advice? Is one of your friends an experienced New York bankruptcy lawyer who will explain the process for you? Are your friends otherwise knowledgeable people? The answer to these questions may be, “Yes but you don’t know it.” Although many bankruptcy lawyers …
Non-Lawyers’ Explanations of Bankruptcy May Be Wrong Read More »
During the Great Recession, mortgage-modification programs emerged as an alternative to default or filing New York bankruptcy. The federal government created one of the larger ones, the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), but the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also introduced their own versions. A new report by the JPMorgan Chase Institute …
Report: Mortgage Modifications That Reduce Payments Work Best Read More »
(Click here to read, “Who Are Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Debtors?” part 1.) In part 1 of this two-post series, I showcased two tables from the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act (BAPCPA) Report for 2016. The information in the tables can help debtors with consumer debts answer common questions they have about Brooklyn bankruptcy …
Who Are Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Debtors? (Part 2 of 2) Read More »
Normally, when a homeowner makes a mortgage payment, the servicer places the money in escrow and then distributes it to the relevant parties (the creditor, the insurance company, the government, and itself as a fee). Problems can arise with partial mortgage payments. Instead of placing it in escrow, making a partial distribution to the creditors, …
What Are ‘Suspense Accounts’ and How Do They Relate to Foreclosure? Read More »
The New York Fed is apparently very interested in the effects of college costs on young Americans’ home buying. The central bank branch explored the topic of student loans leading to lower homeownership rates in April, but in July it looked at it from a different angle: how public university tuition costs relate to homeownership. …
New York Fed: Higher College Costs Translates to Less Homeownership Read More »
Chapter 7 New York bankruptcy is often offered as an option for stopping a foreclosure. However, debtors should ask why it’s worth the trouble if they think they will lose their homes anyway. It’s a fair point: Debtors who are behind on their mortgages might not keep their homes in chapter 7. Ultimately, the answer …
Why File Chapter 7 to Delay an Inevitable Foreclosure? Read More »
A long time ago, I discussed the requirements in New York for a successful deed-in-lieu of foreclosure agreement, also called a mortgage release. The benefits of such an agreement are that the lender is able to resell the property and the borrower is no longer obligated to pay on an ultimately unaffordable mortgage. The question, …
Is Renting Your Underwater Home From the Bank a Good Idea? Read More »
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