Bankruptcy Blog
Mortgage foreclosures are at record highs in part because many people believe that the 2005 Bankruptcy Law made credit cards survive bankruptcy. This is not true - credit card debt can still be discharged in bankruptcy.
According to a researcher at Credit Suisse Holdings USA Inc. in New York, of those people who are 3 months behind on their mortgages, 70% of them are current with their credit card debt! Now that doesn't make sense - people are paying their credit cards but NOT paying their mortgage? That is backwards!
The New Housing Bill
July 30, 2008 by Matthew A. Casper
President Bush signed the new housing Bill today. Earlier reports where that President Bush would not sign the bill if it got out of Congress and through the Senate. However, when the bill got to his desk it was signed with little fanfare. We have had dozens of clients asking if this new bill can help them in their housing situation. Unfortunately, the bill is designed to help a very small percentage of mortgages and requires the home owner to fit into a narrow category.
For a look at what the housing bill is suppose to accomplish, read this brief excerpt. Where most people facing bankruptcy will fit into this bill is the hope to refinance out of an unfavorable loan. In order to do this, the home owner has to be facing foreclosure, and the bank has to agree to take something of a loss.
The hard truth is that it is going to take some time for the government to actually implement the new bill, and even more time to see how, and if, it works.
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Zombie Debt & Foreclosure News
June 13, 2008 by Todd N. Wilkinson
Even if you have filed for bankruptcy, unscrupulous collection agencies may still attempt to collect on your discharged debts. The collection agencies know that many people will end up paying rather than fight. Additionally, these collection agencies may report such discharged debt to the credit reporting bureaus (Equifax, TransUnion and Experian).
Read more about zombie debt here.
In other news, foreclosures are up 48% nationally compared to last year. Lenders attempting to modify loans in a last ditch effort to prevent foreclosures are totally overwhelmed. Compounding the situation are rising mortgage rates based on inflation concerns.
Read the foreclosure news story here.
Call Oliveros & O'Brien, P.C. to schedule a free consultation if you have a pending foreclosure or are experiencing "zombie debt" issues. It's a good idea to visit www.annualcreditreport.com once a year to verify the accuracy of information on your credit reports.
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Foreclosures Continue to Rise As Owners 'Give Up'
March 6, 2008 by Todd N. Wilkinson
As adjustable rates continue to rise, more subprime and prime borrowers are choosing to simply walk away from their homes. The biggest U.S. mortgage companies have posted their worst losses to date as rising defaults boosted credit costs. Both the Bush administration and Congress are urging mortgage companies to modify loan terms to slow the tide of foreclosures, and the Federal Reserve continues to slash rates to avoid recession.
Oliveros & O'Brien, P.C. has seen a steady rise in bankruptcy filers in recent months. Chapter 13 bankruptcy remains a viable way to protect homes from foreclosure by allowing the homeowner to cure arrearages over a period of 3 to 5 years without additional interest or penalties.
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New Senate Bill Seeks to Makeover Chapter 13
February 19, 2008 by Todd Wilkinson
A legislative proposal named the "The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act" is scheduled to be debated next week and is backed by House and Senate by Democrats. The "Act" purportedly allows families file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy to save their homes, and gives judges the ability to modify mortgages to keep homeowners in their properties. Critics believe such a bill will make mortgages more difficult to obtain and send interest rates higher.
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Bankruptcy Tweak can Ease Subrime Woes
February 7, 2008 by Matthew Casper
A former U.S. housing secretary on Tuesday urged allowing bankruptcy judges to erase some mortgage debt, saying it would save several hundred thousand borrowers from foreclosure as a nationwide housing crisis tightens its grip.
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Stuck In a Mortgage You Can't Afford? You're Not Alone
January 14, 2008 by Matthew Casper
The mortgage crisis came about because our society did not think to intervene at a juncture where it could have limited the effects of thoughtlessness and greed, according to author William F. Buckley. Government action is needed because it has been nearly impossible to identify the guilty parties for the crisis. What the market would do, facing that situation, is to impose punishment on the disorderly mortgage brokers and lenders, he said. However, they are almost universally out of sight as they passed these troubled mortgages on to buyers who have been waking up during the past six months bereft of assets they thought they had. If we could start from scratch, he added, we might have managed a federal regulation that forbade giving mortgages to people without an adequate credit history.
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Bankruptcy Filings Jump 40% in 2007
January 9, 2008 by Todd N. Wilkinson
Newly released data from the American Bankruptcy Institute show bankruptcy filings increased 40% in 2007. The Institute believes the mortgage crisis is largely to blame, and that increasing heavy debt loads will likely lead to even more bankruptcy filings for 2008.
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Mortgage Rates may Freeze
December 6, 2007 by Matthew Casper
The Bush administration is ironing out details that will freeze the interest rate on only a very limited number of subprime mortgages. This freeze would keep the interest rates from rising for just a few years, then they will most likely shoot right up to where they are going. The wave of mortgage foreclosures threatens to worsen the severe slump in housing by dumping more foreclosed properties onto a glutted market, further depressing home prices and shaking consumer confidence.
Call our office for a free consultation to see if your mortgage will be affected and how bankruptcy may help you keep your home in this tumultuous real estate market.
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Nationally Certified Bankruptcy Attorney
November 12, 2007 by Webmaster
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Creditors Ignore Bankruptcy - Get Slapped
November 1, 2007 by Michael O'Brien
Very interesting article in Business Week online today. Follow the link below for the full article. In short, creditors don't respect the "fresh start" of a bankruptcy and are finding new ways to collect old debt. With the right bankruptcy attorney these creditors are getting slapped hard!
Business Week Online Story Link