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Posted by Ryan Blay on December 19th, 2011 in Bankruptcy Information, Chapter 13, Foreclosure - Saving Your Home, Illinois, Mortgage Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modifications, Uncategorized, Wisconsin
While each bankruptcy case is different we attorneys at Lakelaw see a common theme among many bankruptcy filers: the threat of losing a home in foreclosure. This post tries to explain some of the options debtors have when facing foreclosure.
The first question anyone must answer is whether or not to try and save the home. Someone wishing to walk away from their home without a final foreclosure could have two options: Attempting a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure or agreeing to a Short Sale
In a Deed-in-Lieu, the offer is to give the home back to the bank to stop the foreclosure. However, mortgage defense attorneys have not seen much success with this lately. Due to so many homes already foreclosed (and those that are still going to be foreclosed on any day now), banks are often refusing to accept a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure.
A second is a short sale. A short sale involves a homeowner, with the help of a realtor, finding a buyer who is willing to buy the home at a reduced value. The bank would then have to agree to waive the difference between what the home sold for and what was owed—the deficiency—or the homeowner would have to bring money to pay the difference at closing. Banks like the idea of having a waiting buyer instead of waiting through months of foreclosure, but they do not like the idea of walking away from the deficiency amount.
What if you want to try and keep your home? If you and your bank are working well with each other, a home modification could be an option. The bank would be willing to work with the borrower and try to find a payment plan that works. It should be noted that the Wisconsin branch of Lakelaw has seen some promise in mortgage modification within the Chapter 13 modification program set up in the Eastern District of Wisconsin bankruptcy court).
Another option is Chapter 13 Bankruptcy. This may be the best option a debtor has to save their home. When the debtor files a Chapter 13 bankruptcy an automatic stay goes into place. This means the bank must stop the foreclosure and the borrower can stay in the house as long as they are making payments to the trustee and a payment to the mortgage company after the bankruptcy filing. The goal is to find a way to cover the regular monthly mortgage payment plus an additional amount to catch up on the arrearage. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a difficult process and is different for each person, so it is always best to speak with an attorney about your particular situation.
If you have questions about saving your home, the professionals at Lakelaw are here to help. We serve our clients with Care, Kindness, Courtesy, Respect, Professionalism and Dedication. We can be reached at 1-800-LAKELAW in Illinois and 262.694.7300 in Wisconsin. Give us a call so we can help you with your finances and your home.
This post was drafted by Attorney Nicholas Strom
Posted by Ryan Blay on December 2nd, 2011 in Bankruptcy, Bankruptcy Information, Chapter 13, Chapter 7, Illinois, Wisconsin
Hiring a lawyer for any reason can be stressful. There are so many factors to consider – including the one nobody wants to talk about – cost. For people seeking bankruptcy protection, cost is an even bigger concern. Filing bankruptcy means financial distress. It means not paying creditors and barely getting by. The cost of an attorney is often the number one priority for a client. We urge anyone to consider the downside of hiring a bankruptcy attorney on the cheap.
Sometimes a basic bankruptcy attorney is all you need. Some people can even file simple bankruptcies “pro se”, without an attorney. This is fine if the bankruptcy is easy and there aren’t any problems or unusual issues that appear. However, if problems do arise or the bankruptcy is complex, a low cost, quick fix attorney is probably not qualified. We have had clients walk into our office after hiring a low cost bankruptcy attorney and see the consequences of their choices.
One couple came in to see us after hiring a cheap bankruptcy attorney who knew nothing about mortgage foreclosures. Because of the attorney’s lack of training, the clients are in a much worse position and will probably not be able to keep their house now. Another person came into our office after hiring a low cost attorney and asked why they were still getting mortgage payments in the mail at a high rate. The answer was simple: the quick fix attorney never took the proper steps to inform the mortgage company that the debtors and the mortgage company reached a deal reducing the rate. A third consulted us after failing to tell the courts in her bankruptcy papers that she had a personal injury lawsuit pending when she filed. Now she runs the risk of losing control over the settlement of the case and having the creditors take more than what they would have been entitled to if she had had an attorney tell her that she is responsible for listing any possible lawsuits or claims against anyone.
The professionals at Lakelaw know bankruptcy inside and out and are willing to take the time to work with you all the way through the bankruptcy and other matters that may arise. We offer a free initial consultation and will give you the chance to discuss your personal situation and what you must do to stay strong. Lakelaw will treat you with Care, Kindness, Courtesy, Respect, Professionalism and Dedication. Call us at 1-800-LAKELAW or (262) 694-7300 in Wisconsin.
Attorney Nicholas Strom contributed to this post
Posted by Ryan Blay on September 20th, 2011 in Bankruptcy, Bankruptcy Legislation, Bankruptcy procedures, Business Bankruptcy, Chapter 11, Chapter 13, Chapter 7, Illinois, Wisconsin
Who is the Judicial Conference of the United States? It is a group of judges and other policy members who help shape how the courts run in our country. You may not have been aware of the Conference until today, but one of its recent decisions will affect thousands of bankruptcy filers each year.
Right now, the filing fee owed to the courts for filing a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition is $299. The Chapter 13 filing fee is $274. There are also fees for certain actions taken during a bankruptcy – scheduling additional creditors ($26); filing an adversary proceeding ($250); filing an appeal ($250); and a creditor filing a Motion for Relief from the Automatic Stay ($150).
As of November 1, these fees are all set to rise. Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 fees will go up by $6, and the other actions will increase as well. These fees will allow the courts to balance their own budgets and handle the large number of bankruptcy cases filed each year.
With the costs of bankruptcy set to rise, now is a good time for both bankruptcy filers and for creditors to discuss how these news laws will affect them. For more information on bankruptcy and its filing fees, call Lakelaw at 1-800-LAKELAW or (262) 694-7300 in Wisconsin.
Posted by Ryan Blay on March 25th, 2011 in Bankruptcy, Bankruptcy Information, Chapter 13
Lakelaw is familiar with Chapter 13 Bankruptcy plans. During the three to five year plan, your finances can change, for the better - and for the worse. If anything big happens – a job loss, a big raise, the birth of a new child, emergency expenses – the most important thing you can do is give your attorney a call immediately.If we know about changes set to happen, we can contact the Chapter 13 Trustee and the Bankruptcy Court and explain the situation. We can ask for an increase or decrease in plan payments, a temporary (one month) suspension of the payments, or, in extreme situations, we can convert your case to a Chapter 7 or try to get an early discharge due to a hardship.
Suppose, for instance, your governor and legislature decide that as a state employee, you should have to contribute more to your insurance and retirement plans. Your net income on every paycheck will go down. Before missing your mortgage payment or Chapter 13 plan payment, call your attorney and see what we can do to show your changes on your budget schedules (Schedules I and J) and propose a different plan.
Chapter 13 can be complicated and stressful, but it does not have to be torture or a debtor’s prison. You are paying for the services of an attorney for the full life of the plan, and you should make use of that attorney before it becomes too late to save your plan. If you are in Chapter 13 and you have experienced a major change in income or expenses, call us at 866-LAKELAW or 262-694-7300 in Wisconsin.
Posted by David Leibowitz on January 21st, 2011 in Bankruptcy, Chapter 13, Chapter 7, Foreclosure - Saving Your Home
Just because you file a bankruptcy case, you don’t necessarily lose your house in bankruptcy. There are several considerations;
If you are not behind in your mortgage, you can file a bankruptcy, even in chapter 7 if you are eligible, keep on making the payments on your house and stay in your house as though nothing ever happened.
If you are behind in your mortgage, or even if you are in froreclosure, you can file a chapter 13, stop the foreclosure, catch up on the mortgage payments, and even fight the mortgage company’s claim in some cases.
If you can’t catch up, and even if you are in foreclosure, bankruptcy will slow down the foreclosure for a little while. An Illinois mortgage foreclosure takes almost a year to complete from start to finish. So you probably will have enough time to get ready to move to another residence if you have to file a bankruptcy case in Illinois.
If you are in trouble with your home mortgage and thinking about bankruptcy, contact the experienced attorneys at Lakelaw. We have the answers to all your questions.
And for more information, visit our Mortgage Defense and Modification pages at lakelaw.com
Posted by David Leibowitz on July 18th, 2010 in Chapter 13, Uncategorized, debt consolidation
You see adds on TV – “Don’t Go Bankrupt – Use Debt Consolidation Instead.” I’ve got news for you. Chapter 13 is the best debt consolidation deal ever. Why? Here’s why chapter 13 is your best bet for debt consolidation in Illinois or debt consolidation in Wisconsin
If you want a real debt consolidation – go with chapter 13 and call Lakelaw today 1 866 LAKELAW (525-3529)
Posted by Ryan Blay on June 10th, 2010 in Chapter 13, Illinois, Wisconsin, budget, Chapter 13, equity, means test, plan payments, Supreme Court
The Supreme Court has finally told us how to figure out how much you need to pay in a chapter 13 plan..
The first question we hear after mentioning the basics of how a Chapter 13 works is “how much will I have to pay?” We need to know your “projected disposable income.” Until now, we really didn’t know how to figure this out. The Supreme Court has cleared up a lot of uncertainty about this, particularly when your income over the past few months includes large payments which you won’t be getting in the future. Until now, large one-time payments, like severance pay, could distort your income for “means test” purposes and therefore for purposes of figuring out how much you need to pay under a chapter 13 plan. Unfortunately, without sitting down, completing a full “means test”, a budget, and checking for equity in property, we couldn’t say for sure. We can try to give a good estimate. It’s completely unfair to expect someone to pay money based on income from the last six months if there was an unusually high amount of money, something that won’t be repeated going forward.
Now the Supreme Court has given us guidance we can rely upon in advising you in Chapter 13 cases. Here’s what happened. Ms. Lanning filed a bankruptcy after she lost her job and started a new job. During the six months before her filing, she received a severance over two months. That severance made her look like she was a wealthy woman and put her above the median income level for a single woman in Kansas. Although her budget showed she had about $144 per month to pay to a Chapter 13 plan, her “means test” told the courts she should really be paying much more – $756 per month – over $600 more than she could afford!
Ms. Lanning proved that a one-time event that is certain not to happen again was the cause of this inflated amount. The Supreme Court sided with her and said that her “projected disposable income” – the amount she needed to pay every month into her bankruptcy plan – was more accurately reflected by her budget.
This case can cut both for or against people who may file chapter 13. But at least we can tell you what to expect with a high degree of certainty. The most important thing you can do to determine what you should be paying to a Chapter 13 plan is to speak with a qualified attorney to review your case completely and let them fight for you.
Lakelaw files Chapter 13 Bankruptcies in Wisconsin and Illinois and can help you understand how plan payments work in Chapter 13 in compliance with the Supreme Court’s Lanning decision. Call 262-694-7300 in Wisconsin or 1-866-LAKELAW in Illinois today so that we can help you get out of debt for good.
Posted by David Leibowitz on March 2nd, 2010 in BAPCPA, Bankruptcy, Chapter 13, Chapter 7
Most people who file bankruptcy want to file a chapter 7. This eliminates most debts right away. Some people aren’t eligible for chapter 7. Most of these people end up having to pay their creditors for up to 5 years in a chapter 13 case. How come?
Back in 2005, Congress decided that people who could pay something to their creditors had to do so to get relief in bankruptcy. In fact, Congress decided that people who made more than the median income were presumed to be abusing the system if they tried to file a chapter 7 case to eliminate their debts.
So they devised a complicated means test. If the prospective debtor “passed the means test” then that meant that the debtor no longer is “presumed to be abusing the system” by filing a chapter 7 case.
But that doesn’t mean that our prospective debtor is home free.
Every debtor has to prepare a budget of income and expenses and file it as part of their bankruptcy case. And if that budget of income and expenses shows that the debtor has, or even may be expected to have, significant disposable income, the United States Trustee might try to prove that the debtor is nevertheless abusing the system, even if the debtor “overcomes the presumption of abuse” by “passing the means test.” If under the “totality of circumstances” the court determines that the debtor’s chapter 7 case is abusive, the court could still dismiss a debtor’s chapter 7 case for abuse.
Oddly enough, this entire analysis only applies for a debtor whose debts are primarily consumer debts – or debts incurred for personal purposes. A debtor with predominantly non-consumer debts isn’t even subject to the means test at all.
Who says bankruptcy is easy? For more information about consumer debts as opposed to non-consumer debts in bankruptcy, click here.
For careful and thoughtful analysis of your case, call on Lakelaw – serving debtors in Illinois and Wisconsin – at 1 866 LAKELAW (525-5329).
Posted by David Leibowitz on December 10th, 2009 in Chapter 13, Foreclosure - Saving Your Home, Mortgage Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modifications
Today I heard about a couple’s predicament: They just had their second child. Mom is staying home. So the couple went from a two-income household to a one income household. However, they did not go from a two-mortgage home to a one-mortgage home at the same time! As a result of the blessed event, they also faced big credit card and medical debts. What to do?
Well, they could file a chapter 7 bankruptcy – if they qualify through the means test. Their previous six-months income was still high, but that would change within a short period of time. They could also try to defeat the presumption they are abusing the system by showing the permanent change in their income since Mom is staying home with the kids.
This would eliminate a lot of debt, but not the debt that’s giving them the most headaches: Their second mortgage. It’s a high interest home equity loan. And the house is worth even less than the first mortgage. So we discussed Chapter 13 as an option.
Despite the huge influence banks have over Congress, the bankruptcy laws still allow a couple to eliminate the second mortgage in the Chapter 13 if the house is worth even less than the first mortgage. This is fantastic news for our couple because they can stop paying their second mortgage, and pay their chapter 13 Plan instead. That plan will mean that those creditors will be old news in 5 years, and so will that pesky second mortgage. It may seem counterintuitive – paying more money saves you more money? But sometimes that’s just the way it works out.
For financial relief in Kenosha, Racine, Walworth or Milwaukee, call Lakelaw today at 262.694.7300 and ask for Attorney Ryan Blay or David Leibowitz.
This post was written by Ryan Blay, Supervising Attorney in Lakelaw’s Kenosha office.
Posted by David Leibowitz on October 11th, 2009 in Bankruptcy, Chapter 13, Chapter 7, Mortgage Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modifications, Wisconsin
Lakelaw represents people in Wisconsin in Consumer Bankruptcy Cases and in defending against mortgage foreclosures. Our office is in Kenosha. However, we can help you just about anywhere in the State. In Wisconsin, lawyers frequently appear in court by telephone and remote access. We find it saves us a lot of time driving around the state. We think that if this is good enough for us in working with the courts, it’s good enough for you in working with us. If you would like to work with an outstanding, Board Certified, bankruptcy lawyer, recognized throughout
Wisconsin for expertise in mortgage foreclosures, Lakelaw is the place for you – from Eau Claire to Kenosha and from Monroe to Green Bay. If you are reading this blog, you have demonstrated that you are techologically advanced. We use technology to project our practice throughout the state. Call 1 – 866- LAKELAW (525 – 5359) for bankruptcy and mortgage foreclosure help now.
Illinois Lawyer David P. Leibowitz handles business law, estate planning, probate, asset
protection, consumer bankruptcy, business bankruptcy, real estate, elder law, guardianships, identity theft, consumer protection, commercial collections and foreclosure defense matters from Chicago to Milwaukee with offices in Chicago, Skokie, Waukegan, Milwaukee and Kenosha.
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