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Posted by Ryan Blay on February 9th, 2012 in Foreclosure - Saving Your Home, Illinois, Mortgage Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modifications, Wisconsin
Today a national mortgage settlement was announced with five of the country’s biggest servicers: Ally (GMAC), Bank of America, Citi, Chase and Wells Fargo. A website was even created to answer some of the most basic questions – and direct the rest of your questions to the servicers. So if you have questions about what relief you are supposed to receive – call the parties that committed the robosigning and other bad acts in the first place!
What this means for homeowners who are still suing these lenders and servicers is unclear. The settlement terms supposedly allow lawsuits against the servicers and the mysterious MERS Corp., allow criminal actions against the servicers, send some money to foreclosed borrowers from January 1, 2008 through December 31, 2011, and provide money to the states for principal reductions on first and second mortgages.
What are your thoughts? Is the $25 billion received in the settlement enough? Will the nationwide servicing standards actually be enforced against the servicers if they continue to improperly foreclose? Will homeowners who lost their houses due to unethical and possibly illegal activity ever get compensated? Will the money to help write down some mortgages slow or stop the ongoing foreclosure crisis? Only time will tell. But don’t let this news stop you from calling us at (866) LAKELAW or (262) 694-7300 in Wisconsin if you are still facing foreclosure or have questions about your mortgage and other debts.
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 November 21st, 2011 in Alternatives to Bankruptcy, Illinois, Wisconsin
No. Social Security, like most government assistance, is completely off-limits to creditors. This means that creditors cannot take Social Security payments. As a society, we have decided that those who are unable to work should not harassed by creditor garnishment. Social Security payments are not large amounts of money, so Social Security recipients should be able to keep their benefit payments for personal needs.
There are two important things to keep in mind. First, creditors can still collect against non-exempt assets. This means that creditors who have judgments can take property not shielded by the laws of the debtor’s state. After the creditor takes the property, it can sell it in order to pay off the debt. If that process does not completely pay off the debt with the sale, the creditor can keep taking non-exempt property until the debt is paid in full. It is important to remember that creditors cannot come after ALL of your property, only property not protected by statute.
The second thing to remember is that there is nothing preventing a creditor from asking for a payment. Often, a creditor will ask a Social Security recipient if he or she would be willing to continue making payments. There is nothing preventing a debtor on Social Security from agreeing to an arrangement. That said, a debtor should remember that Social Security payments are off-limits to creditors and the creditor will not be able to take Social Security payments without the debtor’s consent.
If you have questions about Social Security payments and debt, or any other consumer matters, please feel free to contact the professionals at Lakelaw (866-LAKELAW, or 262-694-7300 in Wisconsin). We specialize in helping people get their financial houses in order while treating clients with Care, Kindness, Courtesy, Respect, Professionalism and Dedication.
This post was drafted by Nicholas Strom, Lakelaw attorney
Posted by Ryan Blay on October 25th, 2011 in Bankruptcy, Bankruptcy Crimes, Bankruptcy Information, Bankruptcy procedures, Illinois, Wisconsin
There are several different ways to prepare a bankruptcy petition in a bankruptcy court. The first is the most common – hire an attorney. Your attorney will be required to electronically file your bankruptcy schedules, plan (if you have a Chapter 11, 12, or 13) and other paperwork through your local court’s electronic service after helping prepare and review everything.
Courts also allow debtors without attorneys (“pro se” filers) to prepare and file the paperwork directly with the clerk of the Bankruptcy Court. This involves handing in the paperwork to a clerk, who will scan and input it into the court’s system. It’s a self-help system to allow people who cannot afford or do not want an attorney’s help to file.
Other non-attorneys called Bankruptcy Petition Preparers will charge a small fee to type the paperwork into bankruptcy software (or hand-write it in some cases). They advertise as being cheaper than attorneys and will claim to save time and skip the hassle of using an attorney. However, these preparers (sometimes called BPPs) can be more trouble than their fees.
The US Bankruptcy Court in Milwaukee has permanently barred 7 petition preparers from helping people out. They have been barred for a number of reasons, including passing themselves as real attorneys. They are not, and are barred by United States Law from giving legal advice or pretending to be lawyers. Other preparers have been ordered to attend court to explain their behavior to judges, but have not been barred. That step could come at any time.
As long as petition preparers disclose their fees in the schedules, sign the required forms, and avoid giving legal advice, the Bankruptcy Code allows them to help prepare petitions. But many times they fail to do so and lie to the courts, telling people not to inform the court that they were used to prepare the paperwork. Does committing a crime by lying to the court and your bankruptcy trustee sound like a good iea? It’s not.
The only source of legal advice is to see an attorney, preferably one with a long history of experience in bankruptcy. It is well worth the extra money to protect assets, stop creditors, and ensure a successful bankruptcy.
If someone charges you a fee to prepare paperwork and instructs you to hide that fact, do the smart thing and go see an attorney immediately. To contact Lakelaw and speak with a professional attorney with bankruptcy experience, please contact us at 866-LAKELAW, (262) 694-7300 in Wisconsin, or visit our website at www.lakelaw.com
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 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 Jonathan Brand on March 22nd, 2010 in Business Bankruptcy, Chapter 11, Illinois, Real Estate, Uncategorized, Wisconsin
Now that we have explored the characteristics of a Single Asset Real Estate debtor in bankruptcy (see the First and Second blawgs in this series), it is time to look at the advantages of filing a chapter 11 case for a Single Asset Real Estate debtor.
One significant benefit of a Single Asset Real Estate entity filing chapter 11 is the automatic stay. The Bankruptcy Code provides that all foreclosure and collection activity must stop when a debtor files bankruptcy. If your company is facing an imminent Motion to Appoint a Receiver or a Foreclosure Sale in a state court case, filing chapter 11 will temporarily stop the state court action from moving forward.
The automatic stay will also provide the Single Asset Real Estate debtor some flexibility to develop cash if the property has tenants and is producing cash flow or rental income. If there is sufficient cash flow, a Single Asset Real Estate Debtor will be more likely to develop cash when the value of the loan is worth less than the value of the property.
While the automatic stay is beneficial for many debtors, the automatic stay has a limited shelf-life in a Single Asset Real Estate case. The automatic stay is limited to a 90-day period in Single Asset Real Estate case. At the conclusion of the 90-day period, the Single Asset Real Estate debtor must propose a plan of reorganization or begin to tender monthly payments due to the lender(s) of the debtor.
Lakelaw understands how to plan so this deadline can work in favor your chapter 11 case. The key to success is pre-bankruptcy planning. Through planning prior to filing for bankruptcy, Lakelaw can prepare for the difficulties presented by the limited application of the automatic stay.
Despite the abbreviated period for the application of the automatic stay, a Single Asset Real Estate case still has benefits. Generally, with proper planning, a Single Asset Real Estate debtor may be able to successfully cram down a lender. A cram down, under the Bankruptcy Code, allows a debtor to modify the monthly payments (and the amount of principal) due to a lender under loan. If a Single Asset Real Estate debtor can propose a feasible chapter 11 plan of reorganization, then it is more than likely that the entity can:
To be clear, while there are some risk in filing a Single Asset Real Estate case; with the right counsel, strategy and planning, there are many rewards which may be realized by an entity (or its investors).
Lakelaw appreciates and understands the complexities of the Bankruptcy process. We can help you or your company successfully maneuver through the bankruptcy process. With over 35 years of experience in evaluating Single Asset Real Estate cases, Lakelaw can identify what is the best option for your company. Lakelaw serves clients with financial restructuring needs throughout Illinois and Wisconsin.
Posted by David Leibowitz on March 17th, 2010 in Illinois, Wisconsin
Lakelaw files bankruptcy cases for people and businesses in Illinois and Wisconsin. Lakelaw also defends residential and business foreclosures in Illinois and Wisconsin. We thought we focused on the area from Chicago to Milwaukee. But Illinois and Wisconsin are big states. People have been calling on us for help from all over Illinois and Wisconsin. So Lakelaw is developing a virtual consumer bankruptcy practice. We didn’t try to. But our clients wanted it. And we’ve responded.
Just today, we served clients from Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, Lisle, Illinois, Naperville, Illinois, Lindenhurst, Illinois, Highland Park, Illinois, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin and Rosemont, Illinois. Not one of these clients actually came to any of our offices.
How did this happen? Technology. Our clients find us on the internet. So we connect with our internet-savvy clients by Skype, Facebook, telephone, and several other channels of communication. We gather information electronically. We offer our clients information through the web as well. We communicate very effectively. Each of these communications lead to our ability to taking on new clients from far and wide.
The distance between our client from the Wisconsin Rapids to our client in Naperville is 245 miles. And yesterday, we heard from a client in Effingham, Illinois. That’s 211 miles south of our Chicago office.
We are grateful that clients throughout Illinois and Wisconsin have found our bankruptcy and mortgage foreclosure defense services to their liking. Through our creative use of modern communications and information channels, we can give you prompt, efficient and personal service whether or not you choose to visit us in our offices. As always, we thank you for your confidence in us and promise to serve you with Care, Kindness, Courtesy, Respect, Professionalism and Dedication.
Posted by David Leibowitz on January 12th, 2010 in Illinois
Clients ask us if we practice Illinois Bankruptcy Law. Strictly speaking, we don’t do that. What we do is represent clients in bankruptcy law in Illinois. What’s the difference?
Plenty.
Under our Constitution, there is just one bankruptcy law. It’s federal. In just one sentence of the Constitution, our Founding Fathers gave the United States federal government gave Congress the exclusive right to regulate both bankruptcy and immigration. That’s quite an assignment for one sentence.
Even though we practice federal bankruptcy law, Illinois law is still very important to our Illinois debtors in bankruptcy. Why? That’s because all property rights are determined by State law. Not only that, in Illinois, all exemptions – property you can keep in bankruptcy – is determined exclusively by Illinois law.
Now, if you moved into Illinois from another state, other state or even federal law may decide what you get to keep. But that’s a different question for a different day.
So remember. Lakelaw practices bankruptcy law in Illinois. Don’t let anyone tell you that they practice Illinois Bankruptcy Law. If they do, run in the opposite direction!!
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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