Tag: Kingcade

Bankruptcy Law, Credit Score

Tips to Help Seniors Bounce Back from a Bankruptcy Filing

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With the rising costs of health care and inflation, it is not uncommon for seniors to seek bankruptcy relief. Although bankruptcy can remain on a filer’s credit report for seven to 10 years, depending on the type of bankruptcy, there are certain steps seniors can take to boost their credit score during this period.

Prepare a Budget

One of the most important steps a senior can take after filing for bankruptcy is to prepare a budget. Many agencies, including the AARP Foundation, will work with the senior to prepare one. Most seniors live on fixed incomes, which leave very little room for unexpected expenses, such as large medical bills or expensive home repairs. However, if senior consumers can put together a plan that gives them leeway to pay for the unexpected, this budget will help them prevent falling into the same financial situation, again.

Bankruptcy Law

Retailers and U.S. Businesses that Filed for Bankruptcy in 2019

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This past year was not a profitable one for a number of U.S. businesses and retailers, resulting in many of them filing for bankruptcy in 2019. These businesses ranged from brick-and-mortar companies to online stores, and by the end of the year, more than 7,000 stores closed nationwide. Some of the well-known ones include:

Barneys New York

The luxury department store filed for bankruptcy in August 2019, which came as a surprise to many since the business has been running for a century and has survived many financial ups and downs. However, after filing for bankruptcy this summer, the company was purchased by Authentic Brands Group, a company that also owns Nine West. Authentic Brands will be licensing the Barneys New York product to Sakes Fifth Avenue, and B. Riley Financial has also purchased remaining company assets in November 2019. B. Riley intends to take Barneys’ luxury products and sell them at much lower price points through private sales.

Debt Relief

A Staggering Number of U.S. Borrowers are Underwater on their Auto Loans

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Purchasing a vehicle is oftentimes a necessary expenditure. A vehicle is needed to get to and from work or driving to school, but for many Americans, buying a car means taking on a large amount of debt. As they trade in their current vehicles for a newer model, many are resorting to taking the unpaid balance on the car loan and rolling it into a new debt. The result is the person will often have a vehicle that is worth much less than what is owed on it.

This negative equity and is also referred to as being underwater on the vehicle. It is reported that during the first nine months of 2019, approximately 33 percent of consumers who traded their vehicles in to buy new ones had negative equity. Five years ago, this percentage was 28 percent, and it was only at 19 percent ten years ago. The average debt owed on these cars as they were being traded in is around $5,000 while the average amount was $4,000 five years ago.

Credit Card Debt, Medical Debt

How to Keep Medical Debt Off Your Credit Cards

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With the cost of medical care increasing every year, many Americans are struggling to pay their medical bills. According to a recent study from NerdWallet, medical costs have increased 33 percent since 2009, while the national median household income has only increased 30 percent. To keep up with these costs, many consumers are forced to pay for their medical bills with credit cards. The problem is credit card interest rates can range anywhere from 10%-30% and come with additional fees and costs if timely payment is not made. Medical bills are expensive and paying them with your credit card will only add unnecessary interest fees to your bills.

Here are some tips that can help you avoid having to put medical bills on a credit card.

Bankruptcy Law

Important Factors to Keep in Mind When Filing for Bankruptcy

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When filing for bankruptcy, certain factors should be kept in mind, including the type of bankruptcy being filed, property exemptions available to the filer, and the various laws and legal regulations that accompany filing for bankruptcy.

The type of bankruptcy being filed.

The most common types of consumer bankruptcy are Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy allows filers to receive a total discharge of their qualifying debts and is an option used mostly by filers whose debts are particularly high compared to their level of income. To file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, filers must qualify under the bankruptcy means test. Chapter 13 bankruptcy allows the consumer to enter a repayment plan to pay all or part of his or her debts over the course of three to five years.

Credit Card Debt, Credit Score

Reasons to Check Your Credit Score Twice this Holiday Season

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When it comes to monitoring a credit score, it is important to pay all bills on time and not max out a credit card when relying on one for holiday spending. However, another factor, known as the credit utilization ratio, plays a major role in a consumer’s FICO score. In fact, this number accounts for 30 percent of the average consumer’s FICO score, and it is the second most important part of a person’s credit score next to paying bills on time.

To figure out what this score is, the consumer needs to add up credit limits across all his or her credit cards and then add up the outstanding balance on each card. Divide the total balance owed by the total limits and multiply that by 100 to determine the percentage or credit utilization ratio.

Debt Collection, Debt Relief

5 Disclosures You Should Never Make to a Debt Collector

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In life, honesty is always the best policy, but not when it comes to communicating with a debt collector. In fact, it is best to use caution when making any statements to a debt collector, as they could be recorded and used against a person later. By no means should the consumer lie to the debt collector, but he or she should at least use reasonable care when talking with someone who is collecting a debt.

It is important to be aware of the tactics that many debt collectors will use to get you to pay on a debt. They often will resort to scare tactics or bullying to put the individual in fear of losing his or her home or livelihood if he or she does not pay on the debt. One key piece of advice is to know that all consumers have rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).

Bankruptcy Law

The Most Common Forms of Bankruptcy Fraud

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Bankruptcy laws require that the filer be honest and open about his or her financial situation, including disclosing all assets and debts. While no one wants to lose property to pay off creditors, some assets must be sold during the bankruptcy case to pay off the filer’s debts. If a filer actively tries to hide or fails to disclose information in hopes of keeping it from the bankruptcy court, this is called bankruptcy fraud and it can cause your case to be dismissed.

Hiding Assets

Concealing assets is one of the more common forms of bankruptcy fraud. Approximately 70 percent of all cases where some type of fraud was reported involved concealment of assets. It can involve the person simply leaving a certain asset off the list of those reported to the bankruptcy trustee. It can also involve hiding the asset through a fraudulent transfer, including giving the asset to someone else to keep it during the duration of the bankruptcy case, with the intent that the person holding the asset will return it after the case concludes. If this type of fraud is discovered, the filer and the person holding the asset could be held liable for bankruptcy fraud.

student loan debt

The Student Borrower’s Bankruptcy Relief Act Would Make It Easier to Wipe Out Student Loan Debt in Bankruptcy

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Discharging student loan debt in a bankruptcy case has been an almost impossible feat for most filers. That is, unless they are able to meet the undue hardship requirements.  However, a new bill named the Student Borrower’s Relief Act of 2019 could potentially remove those roadblocks that have prevented borrowers from receiving relief in the past.

Bankruptcy offers the filer a fresh start where the individual can rid himself or herself of financial burdens that have been weighing him or her down for years. These debts normally include unsecured debt, including credit cards, personal loans or medical bills. However, if the bulk of the person’s debt is student loans, the filer would normally end up in the same situation even after the bankruptcy was over. While medical debt and credit card debt may have been discharged, the borrower would end up still carrying a large amount of debt. It is for this reason that many borrowers might avoid bankruptcy, seeing it as a no-win situation.

student loan debt

Trump Administration Takes Cancer Patient to Court Over Student Debt

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The Trump Administration is taking legal action to keep a former Argosy University student with cancer from having his federal student loans canceled after the school’s closing.  The chain of for-profit schools closed, leaving thousands of students with massive student loan debt and no degree.

The student, Robert Armour, attended Argosy University for his doctorate degree in psychology. He took a leave of absence from his program to undergo treatment for his advanced colon cancer. During this time, the for-profit school shuttered and the campus closed.