Before beginning the bankruptcy process it might be helpful to get your credit report in order. Your credit report states your home address, how you pay bills, and whether you’ve been sued or arrested, or have filed for bankruptcy. The information in your report is sold to creditors, insurers, employers, and other businesses. They use it to evaluate your applications for credit, insurance, employment, or renting a home.

To obtain your credit report you can either go to the website the three nationwide consumer reporting companies-Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion-have set up, call 1-877-322-8228, complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. Do not contact the three companies separately. They only provide free annual credit reports through the abovementioned website or the toll-free phone number provided above, or by contacting them via the mail at: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

You may request your credit reports from each of the three nationwide consumer reporting companies simultaneously, or you can make your request to only one or two of them. You are permitted by law to order one free copy from each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies every twelve months.

You must provide your name, address, SSN, and date of birth. If you have relocated within the last two years, you may have to submit your prior address. In the interest of maintaining the security of your file you may be asked for information that only you would know, such as the amount of your monthly mortgage payment. Each company may request different information because each may have information from different sources contained in your file.

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The means test is a method used in Chapter 7 bankruptcy to determine if you are able to repay a minimum amount of unsecured debt after you have paid your allowable monthly expenses. It is used in cases where your current monthly income is greater than the state’s median family income.

If the means test demonstrates that you have the capability to repay a minimum amount of unsecured debt, there is a “presumption of abuse.” In other words, if you obtain a Chapter 7 discharge, this would be considered an abuse of the bankruptcy process because you might have the ability to repay your debts outside of bankruptcy or through a Chapter 13 repayment plan over an allotted time. The evaluation of your circumstances involves the application of particular IRS guidelines for expenses in determining your ability to repay. This will also include a review of your income from the previous six months to decide if you fall above the median income for the state where you live. The IRS guidelines and median income information can be found on the United States Trustee’s website under Means Testing Information.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and have any questions, please feel free to contact me.   Kevin D. Heupel,   Colorado Bankruptcy attorney,   303-955-7570,      Colorado Bankruptcy Help Email, personal bankruptcy free-consultation form

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In these difficult times you may need to move out of state in pursuit of employment. If you have already begun filing bankruptcy it is permissible to leave the state. Bankruptcy proceedings will not prohibit you from moving. Usually your case will continue via the normal course.

If you are filing Chapter 11 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the case is typically filed and continued where you live at the time of filing. The federal bankruptcy law is applicable nationally and it continues to control your relationship with your creditors wherever you relocate.

It is not required that your case be moved to a court located in your new state, but there may be a reason for the venue of your case to be transferred. For this reason, it is important to discuss any relocation plans with your bankruptcy attorney first. There may be reasons specific to your case that may make it advisable for you to delay moving. Either way, you should provide your bankruptcy lawyer with a way to contact you.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and have any questions you would like me, Kevin D. Heupel a Colorado bankruptcy attorney, to answer watch me on MartinoTV today, Monday, October 26th, or contact me at:  303-955-7570,  Colorado Bankruptcy Help Email, or personal bankruptcy free-consultation form.

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You can file bankruptcy if your only income is Social Security or SSD. But the question is whether or not you should. If you have no plans to go back to work, you may not need to file bankruptcy since you are what is known as “judgment proof.” This means that your creditors may not be able to collect anything from you even though they can sue you and obtain a judgment against you.

Creditors typically cannot recoup any money from your social security income. You will have to determine if you own any real or personal property upon which creditors could make claims. You would be wise to review your situation with a bankruptcy attorney. 

Keep in mind that although you are judgment proof, you may still want to file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy.  If you have secured debt, such as a mortgage or car payment, and you’re behind on payments, Chapter 13 may present the opportunity to make these secured debts current, while still eliminating your credit card or medical debt.

If you have some real or personal property that is not considered “exempt” you can protect the property from creditors by filing a Chapter 13 and paying some portion of your unsecured debt.

There are some social security recipients who are judgment proof and don’t have any non-exempt assets that might still consider filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Doing so will stop the phone calls, bills and demand letters.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and have any questions you would like me, Kevin D. Heupel a Colorado bankruptcy attorney, to answer watch me on MartinoTV on Monday, October 26th.

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I will be on television Monday, October 26^th  on  the MartinoTV show. MartinoTV airs weekday morning on KDVR FOX 31 from 9 a.m. - 10 a.m., and again on KWGN The Deuce from 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. Tom Martino has been fighting for consumers for more than 30 years on television, radio, newspapers, magazines and the internet. I am looking forward to being on the program with him. I will be answering any bankruptcy questions that you might have, so please join us on Monday morning.

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What is a motion for relief from stay? It is when a creditor or someone seeking to continue an action outside of your bankruptcy case files a motion for relief from stay. Usually, the creditor is seeking to foreclose on your property, sell it and apply the proceeds to the debt you owe them. The motions are usually filed in cases where there is no value in the property for the bankruptcy trustee to administer that exceeds valid liens and claims of exemption.

If you decide you wish to object to a motion for relief from stay, you are required to do so in writing. You must file your objection with the court on or prior to the objection date listed in the notice sent to you and you must appear at the preliminary hearing scheduled in that notice. Do not just appear on the date of the hearing to state your objection, you must file an objection or the hearing will not be held and relief will be granted. If a motion for relief from stay is filed in your case, it would be wise to contact a bankruptcy attorney.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and do have any questions please feel free to contact me.   Kevin D. Heupel,  Colorado Bankruptcy lawyer,   303-955-7570,     Colorado Bankruptcy Help Email, personal bankruptcy free-consultation form.

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Certain property is allowed to be withheld from the bankruptcy process according to the Bankruptcy Code. This property is referred to as an exempt asset. Your exempt assets are protected by state law from being distributed to your creditors. Examples of exempt assets include vehicles that are up to a certain value, equity in your home that is up to a certain value, and any tools that you might need in your trade. Exemptions are claimed on a Schedule C. If you do not claim your exemptions you will lose the option. If no one objects to the exemptions that you claim with a certain time, the assets may not be part of your bankruptcy proceedings.

The Bankruptcy Code allows states to choose their own exemptions. Colorado State Exemptions are listed in the Colorado Revised Statutes. One of the more significant and complex facets of your bankruptcy proceedings involves deciding which assets are exempt. If you fail to list all of your property that is eligible for exemption, or to claim any exemption properly, you might lose the right to claim the exemption. Thus it is essential to consult an attorney with any questions you might have.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and do have any questions please feel free to contact me.  Kevin D. Heupel,      Colorado Bankruptcy lawyer,   303-955-7570,     Colorado Bankruptcy Help Email, personal bankruptcy free-consultation form.

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The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 or the Credit Card Act of 2009 is one of the largest reform measures imposed on the credit card industry. The intent of the act is to increase protection for consumers. The Credit Card Act of 2009 consists of thirty-three pages of complex material that contains significant information for credit card users.

A few of the reforms under this legislation are listed below:

• Eighteen to twenty year olds will no longer be able to get a credit card without a cosigner.
• Cardholders will have a right to reject an interest rate hike.

On December 1st, when the legislation takes effect, credit card companies will begin informing consumers in writing that their rate will be increased and card owners will be able to reject the increase. The rejection would result in the account being closed, but would still allow a consumer to continue paying off the balance at the current interest rate.

• The way in which credit card companies apply monthly payments to a credit card balance will change.

For example, suppose someone has a five thousand dollar balance at eleven percent APR and then transfers one thousand dollars to that card at a zero-percent promotional rate. Under the Credit Card Act of 2009, credit card companies must use the monthly payment to pay off the balance with the larger interest rate first. Therefore, in this case, payments would pay off the five thousand dollars at twelve percent first, thus preventing consumers from being stuck with large interest charges.

Those are a few of the major changes to be expected. Hopefully the act will make the credit card industry more consumer friendly.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and have any questions please feel free to contact me.  Kevin D. Heupel,  Colorado Bankruptcy lawyer,   303-955-7570,     Colorado Bankruptcy Help Email, personal bankruptcy free-consultation form.

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You may be filing personal bankruptcy and hope to be able to keep one or two of your credit cards that have a low or zero balance. You are required by the Bankruptcy Code to list all of your debts, including all credit cards with debt. The bankruptcy trustee will ask whether you have listed all debts and your answer must be given under oath. Thus if you leave out any of your debts, no matter how low, you will be committing perjury.

Most credit card companies and other creditors have a clause in the credit agreement that authorizes them to access your credit at any time. When the creditors pull your credit record they will discover you have filed bankruptcy and in most instances will close your account, regardless of whether or not you have listed them on your bankruptcy. And remember if you do not list them you will not be able to discharge the debt.

It is not mandatory to list a card with a zero balance on your bankruptcy petition. Some creditors will allow you to keep their card if it does not have a balance. However, it is not necessarily wise to pay off a credit card immediately before filing bankruptcy in the hopes of being able to keep it. You may well use funds needed elsewhere and the card may end up being canceled by the credit card company anyway when they discover you have filed bankruptcy.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and have any questions please feel free to contact me. Kevin D. Heupel, Colorado Bankruptcy lawyer, 303-955-7570,              Colorado Bankruptcy Help Email, personal bankruptcy free-consultation form.

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The Supreme Court will be deciding on three bankruptcy cases during its 2009/2010 term. In an earlier bankruptcy blog, I have already discussed one of the three cases the US Supreme Court plans to hear. Milavetz Gallop v. United States, which addresses the relationship between bankruptcy lawyers and their clients. As you may recall, the Milavetz Gallop case addresses the requirement in the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 that bankruptcy lawyers refer to themselves as “Debt Relief Agencies.”  The Act also includes other mandated “disclosures” and restricts the advice a bankruptcy lawyer may give to a client.

 Another case is The case of U. S. Student Aid Funds v. Espinosa which will determine the type of procedural steps required to discharge a student loan. The Espinosa case was presented to the Supreme Court from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals after the appeals court decided that a student loan could be discharged by the provisions of a confirmed Chapter 13 plan. The student lender contended that an adversary proceeding was required to obtain the discharge.

A third case that will be heard is Schwab v. Reilly. This case disputes the method of claiming an exemption. The National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys has submitted a brief in support of personal bankruptcy attorneys in the Schwab v. Reilly case. The issues before the Supreme Court are the value of the asset exempted in bankruptcy and the time period allowed for objection to the exemption by the trustee.

If you live in Denver, Aurora, Arvada, Brighton, Broomfield, Commerce City, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Lafayette, Littleton, Northglenn, Westminster, Wheat Ridge, or Golden, Colorado, and have any questions please feel free to contact me.

Kevin D. Heupel, Colorado Bankruptcy lawyer, 303-955-7570 , Colorado Bankruptcy Help Email,                       personal bankruptcy free-consultation form

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