Grand Island Chapter 13 Lawyer Jerry Milner

1. Will I lose anything if I file for personal bankruptcy?

Generally, you may file a bankruptcy and retain all of your personal belongings, including your house, your car and all household goods. We will make sure that all of your personal belongings are protected.

You may be more at risk of losing property if you don't file bankruptcy, as creditors can sue you and attach your bank accounts, garnish your wages and attach and seize your property. As a result, you may miss rent, mortgage or car payments, making it difficult to provide even your most basic necessities.

2. When do l get relief from creditor harassment?

Immediately. As soon as you come into our office, we will ask you to refer all future creditor calls to us. No more credit card payments and no more harassment.

3. Who knows about my personal bankruptcy case?

The only parties that receive notice of the bankruptcy are your creditors, the bankruptcy court and the IRS. Generally, the bankruptcy will have no effect whatsoever on your taxes. Your employer will not be notified of the bankruptcy unless your employer is also a creditor. The bankruptcy is public record, so anyone who wants to find out could determine that you had filed. Generally, however, only you, your creditors and the IRS will know about the bankruptcy.

4. When should I file Chapter 13 bankruptcy?

You can only file a chapter 7 discharge once every 8 years. If you have previously filed a chapter 7 and you are experiencing financial difficulty and it has not been more than 8 years from the precious filing date you may want to consider a chapter 13 to seek bankruptcy protection.

You may also be required to file a chapter 13 bankruptcy if your income is above the average income for Nebraskans based on your household size. To get more information as to what is best for you please contact us for a free consultation.

5. How do I know if I should file personal bankruptcy?

Are you calling because you are being sued? If you are being sued, and you own a home, we strongly urge you to speak with us immediately about filing a bankruptcy. A bankruptcy will stop a lawsuit immediately and prevent your creditors from placing a lien on your home or garnishing your hard-earned wages.

Is your home being foreclosed or is your car about to be repossessed? If it is, very often bankruptcy may prevent the foreclosure action or repossession from proceeding and allow you to consolidate your mortgage arrears or automobile balance and make payments on those debts over time through a payment plan designed by us with your help. If your house is being foreclosed or your car is about to be repossessed, Chapter 7 bankruptcy may not be an option; Chapter 13 bankruptcy may save your. house and your car.

Do credit cards or medical bills have you so deep in debt that it is hard for you to save for the future? if you are only paying the minimum payment on the credit card bills from month to month (generally from two to three percent of the outstanding balance), and the interest rate is only 15% you will take about 20 years to pay off a $ 10,000 debt. Do you really want to be in the same financial situation in twenty years? Chapter 7 bankruptcy can provide you with a fresh start that you are entitled to under the law and get you out of debt NOW.

6. Is filing personal bankruptcy immoral or does it make me a bad person?

Everyone is entitled to a fresh start. Many times, events occur in people's lives that cannot be expected. You may have had a sudden loss in income, a family medical catastrophe, a work injury, or any one of numerous other difficulties that would have been almost impossible for which to plan. Most of the people that we represent are good people who have encountered unfortunate circumstances and just want to get a fresh start. We understand that for most of our clients bankruptcy is the last resort. Many of our clients have a very difficult time determining if personal bankruptcy is the right decision for them.

You must ask yourself? Are the credit card companies concerned about your financial difficulties? Are you paying your creditors instead of saving for your children's education or your retirement? When is the last time you took a vacation? We believe that it is very important for an attorney to provide both bankruptcy and non-bankruptcy alternatives. We believe in giving you our honest opinion as to what will put you in the best possible financial condition now and into your future. The client always comes first.

7. How do I choose a Bankruptcy Lawyer?

When considering filing a personal bankruptcy, you want to be advised by someone who is familiar and experienced with all of the "ins and outs" of bankruptcy law. Especially when you own a home or car or have other assets that you are trying to protect, you do not want your advice from an attorney who knows a little bit about a lot of different areas of law, but not a lot about bankruptcy. We spend almost all of our time on bankruptcy and getting people just like you out of debt. Educate yourself about your options, but be educated by someone who is qualified. Call us for an appointment.

8. Can I get rid of student loans?

Any Nebraska bankruptcy lawyer must have a sophisticated understanding of bankruptcy law to deal with student loans and tax debts. Until October 1998, student loans were discharged through Chapter 7 bankruptcy if the first payment on the loan became due more than seven years prior to the date of filing. in October 1998, President Clinton signed a new law into effect that disqualified all student loans from discharge. We can still help you obtain relief from your student loan debts through the use of Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Under Chapter 13 bankruptcy, we can consolidate your student loan debt, along with any other outstanding bills, and arrange an interest free repayment plan, so that you do not have to suffer through the burden of garnishments, harassment and other collection efforts by student loan agencies. We may even be able to reduce the amount paid to the student loan agency during the course of your Chapter 13 bankruptcy so that your consolidation payment is as low as possible.

9. Can I get credit after filing personal bankruptcy?

Although bankruptcy may legally be reported to your credit report for up to 10 years, you can begin to reestablish your credit immediately. Remember that "credit" is your ability to borrow money. Lenders consider many factors while determining whether to loan you money, but most importantly, they consider your debt-to-income ratio. You are probably visiting this site because you already have more outstanding debt than you have the ability to pay. So arguably, you do not have credit.

Filing eliminates most, if not all of your debts, therefore reducing your debt-to-income ratio, potentially improving your ability to borrow money in the future. Some financial-institutions actively solicit business from people who have filed. Lenders are in business to make money by lending you money and charging you interest Lenders know that once you have filed, you will not be able to file again for 8 years.