Author Archives: doug

New exemption for firearms in the works

By doug | Published: August 2, 2010

By the time hunting season rolls around this fall, the federal bankruptcy code may have a specific exemption allowing debtors to keep firearms when they file a bankruptcy case. The House of Representatives has passed a bill that will create a new exemption covering “the debtor’s aggregate interest, not to exceed $3,000 in value, in […]

Posted in Exemptions | Comments closed

Debtors take it on the chin trying to get rid of second mortgages

By doug | Published: August 1, 2010

The Bankruptcy Code has a well deserved reputation for favoring consumers who litigate under it, but that doesn’t mean that consumer debtors win every case or every argument. A group of Florida debtors were handed a significant loss last week in their attempt to “strip off” second mortgages on their underwater homes. U. S. Bankruptcy […]

Posted in Bankruptcy News, Chapter 7 | Comments closed

A move to curb electronic payment of payday loans

By doug | Published: August 1, 2010

The National Consumer Law Center is now sponsoring an effort to change laws to prevent payday loan centers from using electronic bank transfers to receive payments from Social Security recipients. The center has drafted model regulations that would cap payday loan interest rates at 36 percent, and would require financial institutions to evaluate whether a […]

Posted in Bankruptcy News | Comments closed

Massachusetts extends foreclosure relief

By doug | Published: August 1, 2010

A new Massachusetts law passed this week extends the state’s foreclosure relief for homeowners, attempts to protect renters from eviction, and mandates negotiations between mortgage lenders and debtors. The law extends the “right to cure” period from three months to almost five months if lenders do not attempt to negotiate a loan modification with the […]

Posted in Bankruptcy News, Foreclosure | Comments closed

A-Rod files objection in Texas Rangers bankruptcy

By doug | Published: July 30, 2010

New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez, who is rapidly closing in on hitting his 600th home run, appears to have one eye on on some other numbers, as he has filed a formal objection in the pending Texas Rangers bankruptcy case. The Rangers still owe A-Rod almost $25M in deferred compensation for the years he […]

Posted in Bankruptcy News | Comments closed

A little bankruptcy and mathematics

By doug | Published: July 29, 2010

Picture this scenario: You are thinking about bankruptcy because you haven’t paid your mortgage in many months and are now $36,000 in arrears, and the bank has begun the first steps to foreclosure. You think your house is worth about $230,000, and the payoff balance for the entire mortgage is $240,000. A little “under water,” […]

Posted in Chapter 13 | Comments closed

Be careful when hiring a bankruptcy attorney

By doug | Published: July 29, 2010

You need to be careful when you are hiring a bankruptcy lawyer. I wish I didn’t have to say that, and I am not claiming to be holier-than-thou with regards to other attorneys. I will do a good job on your bankruptcy case, but the plain fact is that there are dozens of other lawyers […]

Posted in Practical tips | Comments closed

The nine-digit ZIP code defense

By doug | Published: July 28, 2010

Can a creditor avoid trouble with the bankruptcy court by claiming they never received notice of the case because the notices were sent with an incorrect nine-digit ZIP code? Not in New Hampshire, it turns out. The debtor in the Mosher case was so incensed that her homeowner association kept sending her bills and letters […]

Posted in Bankruptcy News | Comments closed

Proposal floated to ban employers from looking at your credit reports

By doug | Published: July 28, 2010

Should employers be able to check up on their employee’s credit reports? A new proposal from Massachusetts state treasurer Tim Cahill would ban the practice in the Bay State. Cahill is running for governor as an independent, and as treasurer, he is not part of the legislature; hence, he would need to get a legislative […]

Posted in Bankruptcy News | Comments closed

“I want to file for bankruptcy, and I WANT to lose my home!”

By doug | Published: July 27, 2010

This is a followup to yesterday’s post, where I reassured debtors that filing a bankruptcy case does not in every instance lead to the loss of a home. Today we deal with those folks who WANT to walk away from their houses. Typically, these debtors are seriously upside-down on their mortages, and often months behind […]

Posted in Real estate | Comments closed
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