What Documents Do You Need To File For Bankruptcy
Theres a heck of a lot of paperwork and forms and documents involved in bankruptcy, but lets talk about what you need to gather up at the start:
- Tax returns for the past two years or four years
- Income documents
- Mortgage information
- Vehicle information
- Retirement information
- Identification
- Other documentation showing any other debts or expenses, like alimony or child support
Yes, thats a lot. Bankruptcy is not an easy out! Also, your particular state or court system may require more. Get ready to do a lot of hunting and have a lot of patience here.
Are You Considering Filing For Bankruptcy We Can Help
Being unable to meet your expenses or facing lawsuits for unfulfilled financial obligations is a tough situation to be in and one that you think you cant get out of. Bankruptcy Canada understands your predicament and is committed to helping you resolve your debt issues.;
If youre looking for an effective debt relief solution that is best for your financial situation, Bankruptcy Canada can help. Our knowledgeable and highly experienced Licensed Insolvency Trustees will thoroughly evaluate your financial condition and recommend a solution that will best meet your needs. Meanwhile, also feel free to go through our extensive database of relevant articles to find the answers youre looking for.;
To consider your options and take the next step towards debt relief, contact us by submitting a short form and one of our Licensed Insolvency Trustees will get in touch with you within 24 hours.
What Happens Once You File For Bankruptcy
Once your bankruptcy is filed, there is an immediate stay of proceedings. This means that unsecured creditors cannot begin or continue lawsuits, wage garnishees, or even contact you to request payment.
Within five days of the bankruptcy starting the trustee will send a copy of the bankruptcy paperwork to creditors, so they can file a claim.
The trustee will file outstanding tax returns up to the date of bankruptcy. Any outstanding taxes or penalties owed CRA will be included.
You will have certain obligations that you will have to fulfill including a monthly income statement and attending credit counselling sessions.
- Filing bankruptcy immediately halts most creditors from taking your wages.
- Your Trustee will deal with your unsecured creditors on your behalf.
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Pro Bono Legal Services
Many local bars do great work for the;people who cannot pay the filing fee or need legal aid to reduce the cost of the bankruptcy case. Luckily these bars have a list of some lawyer who is;willing to work for the people who are unable to pay all legal process. In a different location, there are different bars and they may have also online contact. You can contact them to make sure you are getting a;reduced rate of legal procedure with bankruptcy.
Fees Involved In Filing For Bankruptcy
There are 3 things that cost money when someone is filing bankruptcy. These are:
- Filing Fees $335 in 2019
- Debtor Education Course $15 with Walker & Walkers special discount
- Attorneys Fees this varies depending on the complexity of the case.
Almost all bankruptcy lawyers will offer a free consultation for your case, and as you expect, they will be very candid about how much it will cost you and options you have to pay those fees. There is a set filing fee for the process itself and your lawyer will have a fee. You may think to go it alone, but you are setting yourself up for a huge headache and may even be sabotaging your bankruptcy case.
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How To Find A Low Income Bankruptcies Lawyers
Bankruptcy is a condition that makes people helpless financially and it is hard to take any step due to money. A bankrupt people cannot pay a single dollar to the creditor in a tough financial situation. Filing for bankruptcy costs a handsome amount of money. Fortunately, there are some ways to get relief of some money when bankrupt people as the debtor cannot continue paying the cost of the filing.
Bankruptcy Fees Waivers And Payment Plans
If youre unable to pay your filing fees, the court will usually try to work with you. For Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you may be able to roll your court fees into your repayment plan, paying the court in monthly installments. If you file Chapter 7 bankruptcy and youre unable to pay off the fee in installments over 120 days, you might be able to request a fee waiver. The bankruptcy court bases fee waivers on income limits, so your combined family income will need to be less than 150 percent of the poverty limit. If you dont qualify for a fee waiver, you may want to consider applying to pay in installments.
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How To Pay For Bankruptcy When You Have No Money
You may be worrying about how you will keep the lights on and food on the table next week, so how to pay for bankruptcy is no exactly something you want to worry about. However, it needs to be done so you can begin to set your finances right again.
The obvious answer is to borrow money or use your tax refund in order to file. These are good options, but you may not always have them. So if you do not, here is what else you can do.
Represent Yourself Pro Se
Some Chapter 7 cases are more complex than others. If you own a business, have significant assets, or there is a chance your creditors can claim you committed fraud, you will likely need an attorney to help you file. However, if you have a simple case you may be able to manage to file Chapter 7 pro se . A simple Chapter 7 is one in which you have primarily credit card or medical debt, you do not own real property, and you do not owe priority debts like taxes, alimony, child support, or government fines or fees. If you are at all uncomfortable with trying to represent yourself in your bankruptcy filing, do not do so. You will have to meet with the Chapter 7 Trustee on your own, fill out all of the paperwork correctly on your own, and research bankruptcy law to figure out how it applies to you. You will also have to deal with any creditors who object to discharge or who show up to question you under oath in the 341 meeting of creditors. Failing to comply with the courts requirements and rules will cause your case to be dismissed. According to Ed Flynn of the American Bankruptcy Institute , in 91.5% of the 486,347 Chapter 7 cases filed in 2017, the debtor was represented by an attorney. In these cases, 96.2% of debtors received a discharge. Pro se debtors received a discharge in only 66.7% of filings.
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Talk To A Financial Coach
You dont have to walk this alone. Read that again: You dont have to walk this alone. Get with a financial coach and talk about your situation. They arent here to judgetheyre here to help.
A financial coach can help you figure out a personalized plan of action for your specific situation. And yes, talking about money can be terrifying, but if you declare bankruptcy, your financial privacy will be out the window immediately. Opening up to a trustworthy financial coach now can help you avoid having to open up to a whole courtroom of people in bankruptcy.
Need Help Contact Walker & Walker Today
Have you had enough of creditors calling and bills you dont know if you can pay every month? It may be time to investigate bankruptcy and how it can help you get the chaos in your life under control.;Contact us;today to see what Walker & Walker Law Offices can do to help you get started with and get through the bankruptcy process.
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Costs To File Bankruptcy
The bankruptcy filing fees effective January 1, 2017 are as follows:
- Chapter 7; $335
- Chapter 13; $310
The most common type of bankruptcy, a Chapter 7 filing, erases most consumer debts and typically costs anywhere between $1,500 to $3,000 with an attorney. Chapter 13 filing, which involves a debt repayment or reorganization plan, can cost from $3,000 to $4,000 with an attorney.
After the passing of the 2005 Bankruptcy Reform Act, costs for both types of bankruptcy filings rose considerably. This increase in cost was due to the imposed Means Test;and other limitations on filing, which was a direct result of the 2005 Bankruptcy Reform Act.
How To Pay For A Bankruptcy
Filing Chapter 13 means you have the financial footing to structure a repayment plan for your debts including attorney fees after youve filed.
But if youre in enough financial distress that you need to file Chapter 7, youll likely need to pay your attorney before he or she files your case. If you cant afford these costs, you can:
-
Raise the money
-
Work out a payment plan before filing
-
Go pro bono, which means finding an attorney who will take your case free of charge
The first option takes creativity and hard work. The others require you to prove financial need, so gather proof of your income and expenses, as well as your tax statements, before meeting with any legal counsel.
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Retaining A Lawyer To Field Creditor Calls While Making Payments
The automatic stay order that stops creditors from collecting doesn’t go into effect until you file the bankruptcy case. However, once you hire an attorney, you can cut down on annoying calls by instructing creditors to call your lawyer instead of you.
Some lawyers will let you pay a retainer as low as $100 and then pay the remaining attorneys’ fees in installments. However, even though many lawyers offer payment plans, they won’t file your case until all fees are paid in fulland for a good reason. Any amount owed to your attorney would get wiped out in the bankruptcy filing.
Also, keep in mind that this approach will cut down on annoying calls while you save for your attorneys’ fees. Still, it won’t stop creditors from engaging in other collection activities, such as garnishing your wages or levying against a bank account.
Low Money Down Bankruptcy:
In addition to the $0 down bankruptcy, we offer a low money down bankruptcy. In this case, you would pay more than $0, but less than the full fee up front. You could then pay the balance of the fee over the course of the next year.
Much like the $0 down bankruptcy, there are limitations. You would still need sufficient income and we still reserve this option for emergency situations.
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Debts That Can And Cant Be Discharged In Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
Chapter 7 should dismiss most of the debts you owe, but there are some hard-and-fast debts that cant be discharged in Chapter 7.
The list of non-dischargeable debts includes:
- Child support
- Student loans must prove undue hardship
- HOA fees if you surrender your home or condo
- Any other form of unsecured debt.
The Truth About No Money Down Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
The Truth About No Money Down Chapter 7 Bankruptcy-Is it right for me?
You may have seen ads offering No Money Down bankruptcy and been wondering how it works.; Before you decide to file a no money down bankruptcy, you should know how it works, what the pros and cons are, and get tips on how to make the best decision for you and you family.
Normally, you need to pay your attorney before you file bankruptcy. If you owe your attorney money when your case is filed, they become a creditor just like all your other creditors.; Your debt to your attorney gets wiped out just like your credit cards!
This creates a problem, because many people need to file for bankruptcy protection immediately, but dont have a large sum of money to hire an attorney.; They either file pro se and try to figure out the system or wait to file and suffer from creditor harassment until they can pay a lawyer.
Recently, some attorneys started offering No Money Down or $0.00 Down Chapter 7 bankruptcy.; But no money down does not mean No Money Ever or that your case will be handled for free.; Obviously, no business can give their product away and still stay in business.; What this means is a new way of handling your case so it can be filed without a lot of money up front, but the attorney can still get paid.
This is how it works:
Heres what you need to think about:
How much will this cost me?
Who will I be paying?
Do I qualify?
Will this help my credit?
What if I cant pay?
Get a guarantor.
Sell something
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How Can I File For Bankruptcy With No Money
Many clients come to us because they are struggling financially, and they believe they should file credit card bankruptcies, divorce bankruptcies, or medical bills bankruptcies. But how can they file for bankruptcy without any money?
If you are filing under Chapter 13, you may need only very little money up front much of your attorney fee can be paid over the course of your Chapter 13 plan and we have been successful in applying to the court to allow our clients to pay the courts filing fee through their plan as well. We will work with you to make sure you can afford to file bankruptcy under Chapter 13.
Schedule your free, no-obligation bankruptcy consultation with us by filling out the contact from on the right, and we will be happy to explain how this works when we meet with you. You have nothing to lose but your debts.
How Funds Are Recovered And Distributed
To help creditors recover some of what they are owed, non-exempt property owned by the bankrupt as of the date of the bankruptcy, or acquired prior to the bankruptcy discharge, may be seized and sold by the LIT. Exempt property includes property protected by applicable provincial and federal laws , property held by the bankrupt in trust for another and, in some cases, goods and services tax payments.
In addition, the LIT determines the bankrupt’s “surplus” income, i.e., the amount beyond what the bankrupt requires to maintain a reasonable standard of living. The bankrupt must pay this amount to the estate for distribution to the creditors after the costs of administration are deducted.
After the LIT has sold all of the bankrupt’s property, he or she must prepare a final statement of receipts and disbursements and a dividend sheet. The dividend sheet contains a list of creditors who will receive dividends and the amount to which they are entitled. You will be paid the dividends to which you are entitled before the bankruptcy file is closed, which is before the discharge of the LIT.
Once the secured claims have been settled, the dividends are distributed in the order set out in section;136 of the
These prior claims are subject to certain conditions and this list is not exhaustive.
The law gives priority to the claims of preferred creditors over those of other unsecured creditors.
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What Is Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
Chapter 7 is known as the liquidation bankruptcy because it discharges most of your unsecured debt. That includes , medical bills and personal loans.
Its the quickest, simplest and most common;type of bankruptcy. According to the American Bankruptcy Institute , 63% of the 774,940 bankruptcy cases filed in 2019, were Chapter 7.
An even more encouraging;bankruptcy statistic: 94.3% of Chapter 7 filings had their debts discharged, meaning forgiven.
You must pass a means test to qualify for Chapter 7 filing. The bankruptcy means test examines financial records, including income, expenses, secured and unsecured debt to determine if your disposable income is below the median income for your state. The means test income level varies from state to state.
You might be forced to sell any non-exempt assets, though several online sites claim that 96% of Chapter 7 filings are no asset cases, meaning there is not enough equity or value in the property for a trustee to sell it and pay off creditors.
Generally, the Chapter 7 process can be completed in four to six months.
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How To File Chapter With No Money Down
Normally you are to pay the starting $310 as filing cost in most cases. But some lawyers are ready to help to pay in different installments. It means you dont have to pay the full amount at a time. There is also a different installment in a different organization run by;the;bankruptcy lawyers. However, there may be some criteria that;you have to fulfill.
- You dont have more than $1000 in your checking account
- You dont have any pending sales within the next 60 days
- You may have an income source that may be a payroll deduction that can influence the chapter 13 plan payment.
There may be more criteria that you may have to comply with. However, it is really;simple to go with chapter 13 with no money down. In this situation, it is better to discuss with the bankruptcy lawyer about;how they can help you at a;reduced rate. If you think that;it may be cost efficient according to your present condition, this can be the best choice.
