May 2014 - Page 2 of 2 - FREE CONSULTATION

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Top Five Home-Rescue Scams Revealed

Posted on May 5, 2014by Admin

A recent report, called “Foreclosure Rescue, Inc.” has documented the ongoing problems of fraudulent foreclosure rescue businesses and how these companies have plagued unsuspecting consumers following the housing crisis. The report by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the Loan Modification Scam Prevention Network says a database maintained by the committee has compiled more than 40,000 homeowner complaints since March 2010 from borrowers who say they have lost $90 million.

BEWARE of the following foreclosure-rescue scams:

1. Your modification is APPROVED! Send your payments to the following address… The homeowner is tricked into believing their lender has agreed to terms of a loan modification and is instructed to pay the “new” modified payment to the bogus company.

2. We volunteer all our hours with no payments. A purported non-profit agency contacts a homeowner, but after reviewing his or her mortgage sends the person to a law firm that the non-profit works with, which then begins collecting a fee.

3. You are eligible to join our lawsuit. Homeowners are told that they are eligible to join a lawsuit against their bank, but they have to pay an upfront fee and make monthly payments after that. The lawsuit is then never filed and the case goes nowhere.

4. Discount for military members and their families. Homeowners hesitant to pay for loan modification of foreclosure-rescue help are told they can use military discounts to get lower prices.

5. Pay us instead of your mortgage lender and we will protect you. Homeowners are told by the “foreclosure-rescue company” to make their mortgage payments to them and not their lender. Months later, they are blindsided by a foreclosure notice and out thousands of dollars.

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Choosing the right attorney can make the difference between whether or not you can keep your home. A well-qualified Miami foreclosure defense attorney will not only help you keep your home, but they will be able to negotiate a loan that has payments you can afford. Miami foreclosure defense attorney Timothy Kingcade has helped many facing foreclosure alleviate their stress by letting them stay in their homes for at least another year, allowing them to re-organize their lives. If you have any questions on the topic of foreclosure please feel free to contact me at (305) 285-9100. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Timothy Kingcade Posts

New Rules Bring Fairness to Debt Cases

Posted on May 2, 2014by Admin

A New York judge has proposed new filing requirements for debt collectors that will bring fairness to state consumer cases and put them in line with due process. Judge Jonathan Lippman says many debtors discover they have been sued only after their bank accounts are frozen or their wages are garnished. Others are never served a notice of a lawsuit and lose the case simply by default.

More than 100,000 consumer credit card lawsuits are filed in state courts annually, most from third party buyers of delinquent credit card debt. Some of this debt, which is referred to as “zombie” debt, is several years old. The new rules would be implemented by June 15th and are intended to stop default judgments based on what the judge refers to as “robosigned” affidavits, “containing few if any facts relating to the history of the debt at issue.”

Instead, plaintiff creditors would have to file detailed court affidavits identifying the specific content at issue, the credit agreement, the complete chain of debt ownership, an itemized list of the principle interest and other charges. Default judgments would be prohibited where notices are returned because of an unknown or wrong address.

Click here to read more on this story.

If you have any questions on this topic or are in a financial crisis and are considering filing bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Five Ways to Handle an Unexpected Medical Bill

Posted on May 1, 2014by Admin

If you are involved in an accident or suffer an unexpected illness, getting well and your recovery can be just part of the battle. According to a recent study done by Clear Point Credit Counseling Solutions and the Kaiser Foundation, 1 in 3 Americans report having difficulty paying their medical bills.

Medical debt can often lead to other financial problems. Some consumers are on the verge of foreclosure because they have opted to pay their medical bills instead of their mortgage, others are pulling from retirement accounts and facing tax consequences in order to cover medical debt.

Below are 5 tips to help you handle an unexpected medical bill.

1.) Negotiate. If you can afford to pay a portion of the bill, you may be able to negotiate with your medical provider to settle the debt for less than the amount owed. Make sure and get the terms of the settlement in writing and keep a copy for your records.

2.) Request a payment plan. Ask to be put on a payment plan. This is one of the cheapest ways to pay off the debt over time, without accruing any interest.

3.) Use credit with caution. If you have a low-interest or 0% interest credit card, you may want to charge your procedure and pay it off completely before the interest accrues. Beware of “medical credit cards.” Most of these cards carry very high interest rates and if you happen to miss a payment or do not pay off the balance in full by the time the no-interest promotional period ends, you could wind of paying interest on the entire balance, not just the amount you have remaining.

4.) Use a personal loan. This is often a more attractive option than a credit card and is better for your credit score than maxing out a credit card. Come up with a budget and know exactly how much you need to pay until the debt is paid off.

5.) Ask for help. If you are dealing with insurmountable medical debt, request a copy of the hospital’s financial assistance policy. If you are eligible, programs like this may be able to significantly reduce your bill. If your medical bills are so large that you cannot possibly pay them off and you have exhausted all other options, you may want to speak with an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options.

As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.