Debt Relief Archives - Page 80 of 85

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Student Loan Debt- Not just a burden to the student

Posted on December 3, 2015by Admin

Ninety-four percent of parents of college students are increasingly feeling the burden of student loan debt, according to a 2014 survey by Citizens Financial Group. More than half of those parents are worried that the cost of college will impact their ability to retire. Parents who cosign on their child’s student loan debt assume equal responsibility for repaying the loan. That means any late payments not only hurt the child’s credit, but the parents as well.

The problem is wide-reaching, but the middle class seems to have been hit the hardest. In many instances, the debt is held by private lenders because federal loans have been maxed out. Those taking out the loans oftentimes do not qualify for need-based aid since their parents make “too much” money.

Parents who are shouldering the burden of student loan debt are encouraged to look for ways to improve their cash flow by reducing monthly expenses like cable bills, refinancing mortgages to lower interest rates and shopping around for the best insurance coverage.

Click here to read more on this story.

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all 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, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Debt Collectors can now Robcall to Collect Student Loans

Posted on December 2, 2015by Admin

If you are currently in default on your student loans, you may begin receiving continuous calls from collectors to pay up. A budget agreement, which is awaiting President Obama’s signature, contains a provision that allows the government to collect federal debts using automated calling systems to mobile phones.

Not surprisingly, Navient (formerly Sallie Mae) and Nelnet, two companies that service federal loans, have been strongly advocating for this. They both argue that debtors who receive robocalls are more likely to repay their debts. Currently, loan servicers are allowed to robocall people only after they have consented to being auto-dialed and who have verified their cell phone numbers. (Only about a third of customers fall into both of those two categories.)

In an interestingly twist, the bill puts the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in charge of implementing the robocalls- an organization that has been fighting against automated calls to cell phones recently. Just last week, the FCC started publishing reports on consumer complaints about cell phone robocalls to give software developers tools to build apps that will block them.

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Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

What happens to your debts when you die?

Posted on December 1, 2015by Admin

Your debts become the responsibility of your estate. When you pass away, any debts you leave behind could take from the assets you had hoped to leave your loved ones. In some cases, family members can even be responsible for your debts. This is the reason many people purchase life insurance- not only to leave their loved ones something when they pass, but also to take care of any outstanding debt and final expenses.

Mortgages and home-equity loans

If the property has a mortgage, the lender does have some protection, at least up to the value of the property. However, federal law states that lenders cannot force the joint owner to pay off the mortgage immediately after the co-owner dies. This also applies to any relative who inherits the home and lives in it. This means the family member or co-owner can simply take over the monthly mortgage payments. If there is an outstanding home-equity loan, a lender can force the person who inherits the home to repay the loan immediately, which could result in the home being sold.

Auto loans

If the vehicle is not paid in full, the lender has the right to repossess the car. But typically, whoever inherits the car can just take over the payments. It is unlikely the lender will take action.

Credit cards

When the estate runs out of assets, the credit card companies are out of luck. This is due to the fact that credit card debt is not secured by assets the way mortgages and car loans are. Any joint account holder would be responsible for the bill, but people who are simply authorized users of the card would not be.

Student loans

Lenders do not have any recourse if the estate does not have assets to repay other unsecured obligations, like student loans. Even if your relatives are not responsible for your debts, collection companies can still legally call to discuss the debts to find someone who is authorized to pay them, according to the FTC. It is important to know, debt collectors cannot mislead family members into thinking they are responsible for the debts.

Caveats

These are the circumstances in which spouses or other people would be responsible for your debts. These include:

They co-signed on a loan;
Are joint account holders;
Are spouses in community property states: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.

What is protected?

Creditors typically cannot go after your retirement accounts or life insurance proceeds. However, if the life insurance beneficiaries you named are no longer living, your death benefit may go into your estate and then be subject to creditors. That is one reason why it is important to make sure your policy names the proper beneficiaries.

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If you are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all 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 atwww.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Law School Grad Tries to Discharge Student Loan Debt in Bankruptcy

Posted on November 26, 2015by Admin

A recent law school graduate with close to $300,000 in student loan debt is asking for the U.S. Supreme Court’s help in getting it discharged in bankruptcy. Courts including the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Seventh and Eighth circuits are split on what constitutes “undue hardship,” the determining factor as to whether a debtor is eligible for a bankruptcy discharge. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is also on the fence with the issue.

Law school debt has been getting more attention recently. Lawmakers on both sides have “sharply criticized U.S. law schools” for burdening students with crushing debt and non-marketable degrees, according to Bloomberg Business.

This particular student’s alma mater – Florida Coastal School of Law in Jacksonville, FL – has received some negative press about its graduates’ debt. Those in the 2015 graduating class that had debt (93 percent) carried a balance of almost $163,000. In addition, the median Law School Admission Test (LSAT) score for Florida Coastal students was in the bottom 25%.

This student has failed the bar exam for the third time and is living at home with his parents below the poverty line. According to the debtor’s petition, he has struggled with depression and misdemeanor convictions, which make it difficult to find work in the legal field.

It is extremely difficult to prove undue hardship in the Seventh Circuit, without the presence of a serious medical condition, like Alzheimer’s disease or being paralyzed in a car accident. The bankruptcy laws are supposed to be uniform, but there is a split on what the courts consider undue hardship.

The Eight Circuit uses a “totality of the circumstances test,” which is a more flexible standard. It allows bankruptcy courts to consider a variety of factors when determining undue hardship. As a result, if a debtor lives in Arkansas – in the Eight Circuit – like in this case, there is a good chance the high court will grant the certiorari.

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Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Tax Scams on the Rise

Posted on November 25, 2015by Admin

Tax scams are on the rise and small businesses are just as vulnerable as consumers. Authorities report that there have been a rise in calls across the country from scammers claiming to be affiliated with the Internal Revenue Service. In case you are not aware of how the tax scam works, criminals use fear and intimidation practices to coerce victims into sending them money. They basically call victims and leave a threatening voicemail message stating you have a warrant out for your arrest because of a tax violation.

Here is what you need to know to protect yourself and your business from falling prey to this scam.

Get armed with the facts. Remember that these types of scams work on fear and the victims lack of information. Verifying facts is the greatest weapon against these criminals.

Don’t be fooled by professionalism. The scammers sound professional, going as far as to provide phony IRS badge numbers and altering the caller ID numbers to appear as if the calls are coming in from an agency. They also have personal information on their victims to make the scam sound more legitimate.

These tax scams have cost around 4,550 victims more than $23 million since October 2013. And these are just the ones who report it, many victims of scams are afraid to report the crime, which means the loss is likely much higher.

The IRS has released the following facts regarding how the agency contacts individuals.

1. The IRS does not call and demand immediate payment. The agency only calls after first sending you a bill in the mail.
2. The IRS does not demand you pay taxes without letting you question or appeal the amount you owe.
3. The IRS does not require you pay in a specified way, such as a prepaid debit card.
4. The IRS does not ask for your credit or debit card numbers over the phone.
5. The IRS does not threaten arrest for not paying.

If you receive calls for these types of tax scams, hang up and report it to your local law enforcement agency immediately. You can visit “Tax Scams and Consumer Alerts” on IRS.gov to get additional information.

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Bankruptcy Law, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

‘Doctors’ Loophole’ in Student Loan Debt-Forgiveness Helps more Americans than Intended

Posted on November 24, 2015by Admin

The federal government is getting ready to forgive billions of dollars in student loan debt for doctors and other professionals with expensive educations, under a law designed to help “modestly paid” workers in public service.

At issue is the 2007 student loan forgiveness program that allows borrowers who have made a decade of payments and work for government or nonprofit entities, have the rest of their debt forgiven. The program was designed to encourage young Americans to pursue traditionally hard-to-fill positions, such as: public defenders, social workers, teachers and modestly paid doctors in underprivileged areas.

However, the program is helping far more than intended, many of the borrowers being well-paid. Thousands of workers with expensive graduate degrees are set to discharge five- and six-figure student debt amounts as they approach typically lucrative careers.

The biggest beneficiaries will be med school students, who owe an average of $180,000 upon graduation and are increasingly working for nonprofit hospitals to qualify for the program. What is being called the “doctor’s loophole,” financial advisors estimate that many will have 80% or more of their original balances forgiven.

The government will not start forgiving loans under the program until 2017, a decade after it was signed into law. But the estimated tab is growing quickly as enrollment surges. As of September, about 295,000 borrowers in all fields had submitted paperwork and were on track to have debt forgiven under the program, according to the Education Department. That is an increase of 368% from two years prior, likely reflecting growing awareness of the program and a boom in higher-education attainment during the recession. The agency projects a total 600,000 borrowers will have loans forgiven over the next decade.

Supporters of the program note it is achieving the goal of increasing interest in jobs that are tough to fill, like public defender positions. A surge has been reported in applications for legal positions, partly linked to lawyers hoping to shed their law school debt.

The typical borrower in the program owes between $60,000 and $70,000 in student debt, with 1 in 4 owing more than $100,000, according to a Government Accountability Office report. This suggests most enrollees are workers with postgraduate degrees. Critics say the program does little to help the millions of Americans who truly need the relief from student loan debt, like those borrowers who did not complete college and have much smaller loan balances or who graduated with degrees that pay far less in today’s economy.

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Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Timothy Kingcade Posts

New Bankruptcy Paperwork May Result in More Inaccurate Filings

Posted on November 23, 2015by Admin

As we discussed in an earlier blog, the paperwork that people and businesses have used to file for bankruptcy protection since the 1980s is being replaced effective December 1, 2015. Perhaps the biggest change with the new forms is that people and business owners will use two different sets of paperwork to file for bankruptcy. Historically, they have used the same three-page petition.

Bankruptcy experts have expressed concern that the new forms with clearer and more concise instructions (free of legalese) will encourage more people to file for bankruptcy without the help of an attorney. This could lead to people making BIG mistakes.

It is estimated that approximately 10% of bankruptcy filers nationally file without an attorney. While you may think you are saving money, the results can be devastating- jeopardizing your chances of a successful bankruptcy discharge. Studies have shown that filers who hire an attorney to file their Chapter 7 bankruptcy obtained a discharge 95% of the time. By contrast, those debtors who filed “pro se” only received their discharge in 61% of cases.

There are other benefits to hiring an attorney when filing for bankruptcy. A bankruptcy petition incorrectly or untimely filed can negatively affect a debtor’s future, rather than provide them with a much-needed financial fresh start. Bankruptcy is not about filling out forms, it is about understanding the rules, statutes and case law that determine how these forms are completed.

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Bankruptcy Law, Debt Relief, Timothy Kingcade Posts

New Bankruptcy Forms Effective December 1, 2015

Posted on November 18, 2015by Admin

The majority of the bankruptcy forms are being replaced effective December 1, 2015. This change is in an effort to improve the official bankruptcy forms and the interface between these forms and available technology. In creating the new forms, surveys were conducted to determine the problems with the current forms and input was utilized at the design phase from practitioners, trustees, along with software vendors.

It’s important that bankruptcy attorneys do not assume these are the same forms as the old ones. Read the questions and instructions thoroughly. Make sure and get your clients to disclose all of their assets and claims, including the contingent ones.

One of the key features of the new forms is that there is a separate case-opening form for individuals, new Form B101, Voluntary Petition for Individuals Filing for Bankruptcy, and a new form for non-individual debtors, new Form B201, Voluntary Petition for Non-Individuals Filing for Bankruptcy.

The new form for individual debtors would also be used for married debtors. Only business entities would use the non-individual form. The non-individual debtor’s form reflects how businesses keep financial records. The new forms also remove questions relevant only to individuals.

There’s been concern that because these forms are reportedly easier to use, it will encourage more pro se filings. There are warnings throughout the new forms against pro se filings, but these are always a reality.

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Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Three Times Bankruptcy is the Right Decision

Posted on November 17, 2015by Admin

Bankruptcy can have significant consequences to your credit score, but sometimes the hit can be worth it if it means getting out from under a mountain of debt and gaining a fresh financial start. Filing for bankruptcy should not be taken lightly, but if paying down the debt would leave you with no money to put food on the table and pay the mortgage, filing for bankruptcy makes sense.

Here are some additional circumstances when it makes sense to file for bankruptcy.

Your liabilities are more than your assets. Bankruptcy is often the best option when debtors owe so much that their liabilities far outweigh the value of their assets. In such cases, it’s often impossible to ever get caught up.

Negotiations didn’t work. Before filing for bankruptcy, it’s a good idea to try and negotiate with your creditors. There is a possibility they will settle the debt for less money than you owe if you can prove that you are struggling financially. But if your creditors are unwilling to negotiate with you, the only other option may be to file for bankruptcy protection.

A job loss, medical emergency or other financial disaster has eliminated your ability to generate monthly income. Medical bills are the number one cause of U.S. bankruptcy filings. Even having health insurance does not shield consumers from overwhelming medical debt. Bills and debt can pile up quickly without the monthly income, leaving consumers with no way out.

Related Resources:

http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/Saving-Money/2015/1116/Three-times-bankruptcy-is-the-right-decision

Debt Relief, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

$5 Million Foreclosure Fraud Verdict puts National Mortgage Settlement into Question

Posted on November 16, 2015by Admin

A Texas jury’s recent decision to award more than $5 million in damages and fees for the fraudulent foreclosure of a single home has put the $25 billion national mortgage settlement into question.

This month, a jury in Houston awarded $5.38 million to a couple on the grounds that Wells Fargo Bank and Carrington Mortgage Services knowingly submitted false documents to force them out of their home. The financial compensation for the homeowners is as follows: $150,000 in financial injuries, $40,000 for mental anguish, $5 million in punitive damages and $190,000 in attorney’s fees.

There have been approximately 6 million foreclosures since the start of the foreclosure crisis in 2008 and many of them were completed with robo-signed, fabricated or fraudulent documents. If we apply the $5.38 million jury award to all of those loans, the potential cost from the foreclosure fraud scandal is closer to $32.28 trillion!

This estimate represents the extreme edge of the financial hit to the industry. But while the settlement did not preclude individual civil suits like this one, it’s obvious that most victims of foreclosure do not have the financial means to go back and forth in court like this family did.

That is where law enforcement must step in and protect the rights of foreclosure victims lacking these type resources. Looking at this verdict, the $25 billion National Mortgage Settlement has been anything but generous as it represents roughly 0.08 percent of the total possible exposure.

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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.