How to Avoid Bankruptcy

How to Stop Bankruptcy

Learning "how to avoid bankruptcy" can often times be more inconvenient and pointless than actually filing for bankruptcy. If you believe this to be the case, read my other article how to file for bankruptcy. If not, keep reading as I will give some pointers on avoiding bankruptcy so that you can get your finances (and your life) back on track as fast as humanly possible!

Make sure your expenses do not exceed your income. This one is common sense, but needs to be mentioned. If you are clearly spending more than you make, the math obviously does not work out and you may be on the road to bankruptcy instead of avoiding bankruptcy. You need to figure out what is realistic for your budget and work with it…not against it. This is the biggest and best way to stop bankruptcy before it starts.

Second, make sure you are always making more than the minimum payment on all your credit cards. Do not make just the minimum payment; doing that is a sure fire way to get into more debt than ever because your balance will never go down! You will be swimming in debt! Paying the minimum payment is basically like simply paying the interest and nothing else. If you plan to avoid bankruptcy, make sure you are paying off good chunks of your balance each and every month consistently. Set aside extra in your budget for this.

Another thing to consider is if you are only buying things you need. If you waste away a lot of your money here and there on Starbucks or the latest tech gadgets, you will see your extra money dwindle away very fast. This is definitely not how to avoid bankruptcy, so don’t continue this bad habit. While it is easy to tell others "how to stop bankruptcy", doing this ourselves is not always easy…as we all know.

Make common sense become common sense again and you will almost certainly avoid filing bankruptcy easily! Ask yourself each and everyday “how do I avoid bankruptcy?” Get this into your head and you will make much more conscious decisions when you spend money. Being more conscious is the key to how to stop bankruptcy. This is something we can control and we should use our thoughts to control the urge to recklessly spend money we don’t have. Stay out of trouble, folks. Be mature and be smart.

However, don’t let this stop you from treating yourself to something nice once in a while. We need to indulge sometimes. Every so often buy yourself something you want (that you can afford). After all, life is not all about boring budgets and responsibilities. It is about enjoyment, too. Just make sure whatever you buy and the frequency of what you buy is within the lines of your finances and does not push you into bankruptcy. Remember, we are trying to stop bankruptcy here – not cause it.

Keep asking yourself as a daily exercise “how can I stop bankruptcy?” or “how do I stop bankruptcy?” just as you do any of your other daily tasks. Avoiding bankruptcy must be looked at as a daily upkeep that you must work at. You have to have strength everyday to keep yourself in the mindset to stop or avoid bankruptcy. If you do this, you will know how to avoid bankruptcy and you will be just fine!

How to File for Bankruptcy

There are several steps involved in filing bankruptcy. Follow my "how to file bankruptcy" tips and this process will be more streamlined and painless than ever. If you know what to do, how to do it, and in what order, filing for bankrupcy will be much easier than you ever imagined. So read my bankruptcy guide and get ready for this to be as simple as 1-2-3! Really, it will be!

How to File Bankruptcy

The first step is to realistically decide if you will ever be able to handle your debts – credit card debts, mortgage payments, car loans, and so on… Get an accurate calculation of your monthly income and revise your monthly budget to reflect it. Cut out unnecessary expenses and stretch your funds as much as possible. See if you can turn any extra income or money you save from cutting out luxuries into extra credit card or loan payments. Stay caught up at the very least. Staying caught up is a very good sign that you don’t need bankruptcy to bail you out.

The second step is this: Read my article about how to avoid bankruptcy. If you can’t possibly avoid bankruptcy, then stay calm. Keep record of all the debts you owe and get a copy of all 3 credit reports. Look these over carefully.

Third, contact a debt relief company to see if it is feasible for you to get your interest rates lowered or see what they can do to work with you rather than against you. Explore this avenue to a great extent before proceeding to file bankruptcy.

Forth, if it is apparent that you need to go ahead with the original plan and figure out how to file bankruptcy, then contact a local bankruptcy attorney. Bring them all the paperwork I described above: your credit reports, your debt records and monthly income and budget. Talk with them and ask “how do I file bankruptcy”? They will be able to answer all your bankruptcy questions since they deal with these situations on a daily basis.

Fifth, you can possibly file bankruptcy yourself without the help of an attorney. If a bankruptcy attorney plus the cost to file bankruptcy is too expensive, try the DIY (do it yourself) route. "how do I file bankruptcy myself", you ask? Read, read, read about how to file bankruptcy!!! Get familiarized with the restrictions and laws in your particular state. Also get familiar with bankruptcy law in general. You can talk to the judge yourself and everything will be ok. If you have the time to devote to this, filing bankruptcy on your own is a good, cheap way to go. However, if can be a bit of a pain in the butt, so beware! Don’t let this whole ordeal drive you crazy – because it has a tendency to do that!

In summary, remember that filing bankruptcy in your state may vary from other states you lived in before. Don’t assume anything and make sure you fit the profile for how to file for bankruptcy before actually filing. You don’t want to rush into something that you can’t reverse later or that you could have stopped to begin with. You can read how to stop bankruptcy here. Be smart and be cautious. Be calm and be logical. This is how to file bankruptcy and I hope my guide helped your thought process. Good luck!

How to File Bankruptcy

I had to file for bankruptcy and like most people when right out of high school I had no conception of financial responsibility, so eventually I fall into the category of people that had to file for chapter 7 bankruptcies. How I got to that point was caused by multitude of events and I will explain in detail how I got there and show you what not to do to end up where I am and finally I will show you how to file bankruptcy if you are at that point already.

During my teenage years I had many passions and one of them happened to be music, I enjoyed listening to quality music produced by space age stereo systems. What I came to found out was that the space age systems don’t come cheap. Right at about age of 18 I got my first credit card with $1500 limit that was co-signed by my father, so like most financial uneducated person I thought credit was as good as cash. (I never thought about the fact that I had to pay it back) I was so happy the day I got my credit card, because now it’s spending time! The mistake begins. The very next day I went out to my favorite electronic stores to browse for my dream stereo system, before you know it I had boxes of equipment stacked up in my car. Money was not an issue, after all I only had to make minimum payment each month.

Before I know it, I started getting more and more credit card offers in the mail and I signed up with just about every card there was under the sun. No w I am rich I thought to myself, I am now totally armored and ready for any financial crisis that could come.

Shortly after, I got accepted to Florida State University and again just like my financial IQ I had no idea what I was going to do or major in. With financial aid I thought I was just going to major in anything to get by, as long as I get a degree. I was so lost! I was like duhhhh retarded I had no idea what bankruptcy is and how to file for bankruptcy.

Later on during my academic career I found myself deeper and deeper into a financial black hole. What I have been doing is I charge everything on credit for what student loan didn’t cover. Before I can blink I found myself in $20k credit debt, but that didn’t wasn’t really alarming to me since I knew I was going to graduate from college and get a great job that pays $100k a year. NO problem!

By the time I graduated college I was $40k in credit debt not counting my student loan. My monthly minimum payment was around $700 and I was working with USDA for about $7.60 an hour. SO I thought duhhhh again…How do I file bankruptcy I thought to myself seriously at this point. How can I pay off $40k of credit card debt and a student loan that’s yet to come making $7.60 an hour. REALITY HITS.

I thought about joining Tom Vu’s multilevel marketing scheme but I couldn’t even afford his program of making me rich. I was utterly devastated! Destroyed! De-moralized! This calls for some seriously reevaluation of my life. Filing bankruptcy seems to be the right thing to do. I started looking into phone books to find attorney that does this sort of thing and I came to one that seem legit. I called up this attorney’s office and scheduled an appointment. During my initial consultation I found out the cost was going to be about $700 and I need to disclose everything I owned but I get to keep about $3000 value on my car so another words if the car is worth $5000 then I would still have to make payment on the difference which was $2000. I also found out filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy is different than chapter 7, in chapter 11 you still have to pay back slowly but chapter 7 is total discharge with the exception of my student loan.

So eventually I paid the $700 and got the process going and the attorney told me it was going to take a few months before I get a court notice to meet with the interviewers? So clock went tick tock tick tock and now it was time to meet with bankruptcy interviewers and what made matter worse was when I park in downtown to meet with interviews I got me a parking ticket for parking on the wrong side, it was $45 bucks! These people are blood suckers! I am broke and I still have to pay for parking, man!

The time came to meet with interviews and all you do is confirm the information that was told to them already and that was it. So now I only owe student loan and have a sort of new start. I wish there’s a way to get my student loan discharged. I hope someone out there has a guide to help me do just that, because hope this article about how to file for bankruptcy will help someone else.

I would almost say that our system was setup to make us fail that is why you see so many people filing for chapter 7, they don’t really want to teach you about financial literacy when you are in school. Only thing that school teaches you is to go to college and how to rack up your debts so you can get student loan that you can’t pay back and add more credit card debt that you can’t pay back and eventually you will be searching for how to file for bankruptcy on the internet.

Best of the luck to you all, whether if you are filing for chapter 7, chapter 11 or whatever I wish you all luck! Just don’t do what I did and don’t go to FSU because I ended up dumb like this.

About Bankruptcy

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
Chapter 13 bankruptcies are for individuals, not businesses. Filing for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a good choice for people who are trying to pay off their debt but need more time, and protection from the court, in order to do so. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy will allow you to make up your missed payments by giving you more time, and will still leave you the option of filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy if it should become necessary. In order to qualify for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you must have filed your federal and state tax returns for the four years prior to filing.

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
Chapter 7 bankruptcies are a way to have your federal income tax debt discharged, but there are strict rules regarding who is eligible and what can be discharged. Only income taxes can be discharged; no other types of debt are allowed. In order to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, you must have filed your federal income tax return for two years before filing for bankruptcy, three years must have passed before you filed for bankruptcy, and you must not have committed fraud. Even if your tax debt is discharged, if there were liens against your property before you filed for bankruptcy the liens are still in effect.

Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
A Chapter 11 bankruptcy is primarily a way for a business to restructure its debt, but in some cases individuals may also qualify. Businesses that may file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection include sole proprietorships, limited liability companies, partnerships, limited partnerships, corporations, and not-for-profit corporations. In a Chapter 11 bankruptcy, businesses can usually continue their daily business operations, but they will be under the supervision of the bankruptcy court. Depending on the size of the business and its debt, Chapter 11 bankruptcy may be completed in as little as a few months, or it could take many years. Chapter 11 bankruptcy does not discharge debt.

Chapter 12 Bankruptcy
A Chapter 12 bankruptcy is a special type of bankruptcy that only family farmers and family fishermen are eligible for. The Chapter 12 bankruptcy was created in the mid-1980s for the purpose of protecting the livelihoods of family farmers who were facing serious economic hardship. Because it deals with such a small and specific group of people, a Chapter 12 Bankruptcy is usually easier and less expensive to file, for those meeting the requirements. At least 50% of your income must have come from farming or fishing in order to qualify, and there is a maximum amount of debt that can be included. In a Chapter 12 bankruptcy it is possible to both restructure your debt repayment and to discharge a portion of your debt.

Bankruptcy and Foreclosure
If you are in danger of losing your home, you may be able to file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a repayment plan, not a way to discharge your mortgage debt. You must have a regular source of income in order to qualify for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, and you must submit a plan for getting caught up on your mortgage. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy will give you more time to pay what you owe, and protect you from foreclosure while you are getting caught up. You usually have three years to repay what you owe and get current on your mortgage again.

Types of Bankruptcy Debt
Some types of debt can almost never be eliminated through bankruptcy. Examples of debt that cannot normally be discharged as the result of a bankruptcy include child support payments, alimony payments, federal student loan payments, mortgage debt and property liens that were not discharged during the bankruptcy, loans that you received as a result of giving knowingly false or fraudulent information, and debt that was not listed on your bankruptcy petition. There are some exceptions to these rules, and a qualified bankruptcy lawyer or other professional should always be contacted to help you determine what your liability is, and whether or not you qualify for an exemption.

Bankruptcy and Creditors
Whether or not to file for bankruptcy is one of the most stressful decisions you may ever have to make. Adding to the stress and embarrassment is the constant ringing of the telephone, signaling that another one of your creditors is calling yet again, demanding to know when you’ll be making a payment. Once you file for bankruptcy, you are protected from receiving these distressing phone calls. The court will notify all of your creditors of the impending bankruptcy; once they receive this notice, they must immediately stop calling you. If they do not stop, they could face financial penalties and/or legal action. Because it may take a few weeks for the court notices to be received, you have the right to inform your creditors directly that you have filed for bankruptcy protection.

Bankruptcy and Marriage
If you are married and considering filing for bankruptcy, you will need to decide whether only one or both spouses should file since it is impossible to remove a bankruptcy successfully once it is filed. If you and your spouse have eligible joint debt, you can receive double exemptions. However, if only one of has debt, or you or your spouse have additional debt that is not dischargeable, it may be better for only one of you to file for bankruptcy. In cases of legal separation, the decision becomes more complicated. Debt that is discharged through a bankruptcy for one spouse may show up on the other spouse’s credit report. It is important to consult a qualified bankruptcy professional before deciding whether to file jointly or separately.

Bankruptcy and Court Appearances
Many people may delay filing for bankruptcy protection because they fear the stress and embarrassment of having to appear in court. In most cases, you will not have to appear before a judge, but you will have to meet with any of your creditors who choose to appear, as well as the appointed bankruptcy trustee. In many cases, creditors choose not to appear, for one reason or another. The meeting will consist of a series of questions and answers about your current financial situation and your bankruptcy application. If you choose to dispute a particular debt, the creditor has the right to file a motion requiring an appearance before a judge.

Who Will Be Notified of My Bankruptcy Filing?
When you file for bankruptcy, the only parties required to be notified are the bankruptcy court, your creditors, and the Internal Revenue Service (although the bankruptcy filing will have no effect on your tax burden). Unless your employer is also one of your creditors, your employer will not be notified that you have filed for bankruptcy. A bankruptcy filing is a matter of public record, so theoretically anyone could search for that information, if they so chose. This is generally unlikely, however. As a rule, only those directly involved in your case will know that you have filed for bankruptcy.