Manage My Budget

When we hear the word “bankruptcy,” we immediately imagine a bunch of guys in business suits screaming “I am ruined!” and jumping from the Stock Exchange balcony. Well, you are probably not one of those guys, but your minimum monthly credit card payments are already higher than your rent, your cards are maxed out and no one is giving you new ones because your credit rating is lower than the South Pole.

Your salary might be enough to live on, but not with the regular payments to the credit card companies. What’s the point of having a job, if you don’t see any of that big salary of yours? But you are afraid to quit because your salary is the only thing between you and those nasty phone calls from the collection agencies. Like those couple of times you had to postpone paying – one time because of that impulse buy of a huge flat-screen TV and the other time, right after that skiing trip – you still owe the hospital for that one – and it’s more than you can ever pay. The hospital’s collections people still call you sometimes, hoping to eke out a few bucks. Add to all that your student loans – and running away to hide in the Amazon jungle suddenly sounds like a great idea.

Bankruptcy might actually offer you an escape from that ferry-wheel of interest rates and monthly payments. There are different ways to go bankrupt – but the one you will grow to love is called “Chapter 7.” In a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, two important things happen. Number one: your debt gets discharged. Number two (a.k.a. the “other side of the coin”): everything that you own gets taken away and sold to pay back your creditors. That other side of the coin might sound pretty harsh, but fortunately, the law contains many, many exceptions to that rule – all these exceptions basically ensure that no one will take your personal possessions and sometimes even your car and your house. But – your collection of modern art, your villa in Tuscany and your slave army of French chefs will be confiscated. What was that? You don’t possess even a single piece of modern art? What a shame! But, on the other hand, now you won’t have to worry about your belongings getting taken away.

Once your bankruptcy petition is filled out and filed in court, you will have to go for a hearing in front of a bankruptcy trustee, who decides whether to grant you a debt discharge or not. The trustee wants to ascertain that you are not hiding a stash of gold coins or a “Mona Lisa”, because if you are – he will want it for your creditors. If he sees that you have nothing of the sort, he will order all your debt discharged. Well, almost all of it – some debt, like student loans, for example, will stay with you practically forever. But, most debt, such as credit card bills, car leases, medical bills, and home loans will be erased. The discharge order doesn’t becomes final right away – if, say, you win the lottery during the next few months, the trustee will want his share.

Now you can finally take those cooking classes you’ve always wanted to take, start saving and even build up your credit. You’ll be surprised – credit card companies like a person coming out of bankruptcy much more than a person who’s never declared Chapter 7, but has a lot of debt. The reason: you can only declare Chapter 7 Bankruptcy once every 10 years. So, don’t fall into the credit card companies’ trap again – remember, you won’t be able to get rid of your new mountain of debt for quite a while. And, it does feel better without those monthly payments, doesn’t it?

If you live in New York or New Jersey and are thinking to declare bankruptcy, I might be able to help – our law office helped hundreds of people discharge their debt. Once your debt is discharged and you are ready to start anew, read how to make money in this hilarious guide – GetRichandQuick.com.