Will filing bankruptcy ruin my credit for seven years? I heard this again from a bankruptcy client this week. The only seven year debt forgiveness reference I can find is in the Old Testament: “Every seven years you shall forgive them their debts.” Bankruptcy has to be removed from your credit report after ten years. You […]
Does Foreclosure Forever Keep Me From Homeownership
If I lose this house, will I ever be able to buy a house again? That, in a nutshell, is the central worry of Bay Area homeowners who face foreclosure or short sale of their homes. That worry drives lots of homeowners to cling irrationally to a too-expensive house. Fall out of home ownership and […]
The Living Trust: Can You Trust It To Protect You?
Today’s post comes from Los Angeles area bankruptcy lawyer Mark Markus. The Revocable Living Trust. Everyone’s got one, but few can tell you what it does for them. And those who can tell you, often have it wrong. People create these trusts, stick their home, bank accounts, and other assets in them and move on. […]
Debt Buyer Gets Less Than It Bargained For
No way, said the court. A debt buyer who sued a foreclosed borrower, not for money owed, but for fraud in obtaining the loan, was slapped down by a California appeals court. Because the loan it bought was used to buy a home, California’s anti deficiency statute prevented the lender or the debt buyer from […]
Free Retirement Advice By Professional Advisor Comes Up One Tool Short
The 65 year old woman featured in the newspaper’s Money Makeover series got a free review of her financial situation by a professional financial advisor. Over her working lifetime, she’s been the source of financial support for an extended family, including her aged mother and a disabled sister. Her aid to her family has come […]
The Collection Call That Terrifies
Nothing strikes terror in someone behind on their bills like a debt collector call to their family. Sheer terror. It works, too. That fear is second only to a wage garnishment for bringing people to see a bankruptcy lawyer. The only flaw in the collector’s strategy in contacting your family about your debts is that […]
When Foreclosure Requires You Move
When you’ve decided to walk away from a house you can no longer afford, don’t overlook the opportunity to be paid to move out. The foreclosure crisis of 2008 brought with it a new phenomenon: cash for keys. The banks who bought the house at foreclosure realized that it is cheaper and more orderly to […]
Why Rising Home Prices Will Sink Some Homeowners
The median home price in the Bay Area has risen to over $500,000 for the first time in five years, the Mercury News reported this week. For lots of home owners, that says the window of opportunity is closing. What? The usual thinking is that rising values are good for homeowners and bad for […]
Bankruptcy Exemption Bill Changes More Than Dollar Amounts
An odd quirk in California’s bankruptcy exemptions was eliminated when the exclusion for pain and suffering damages was deleted by the legislature. Before January, 2013, someone filing bankruptcy could exempt money recovered for a personal injury up to $17,425. But no part of any recovery for pain and suffering associated with that injury was exempt. […]
Tax Question Roundup
Not long til tax returns are due. Time for a roundup of tax issues I see from atop my soapbox. I’ll point you to fuller discussions of tax topics. Are Chapter 13 payments deductible? I’ve never seen a claim that the entire monthly payment is deductible. In a case where all of the […]
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