Legal avenues exist for you to deal effectively with your debts. You do not have to hide from creditors or worry about your wages and bank accounts being seized. Instead, you can file for bankrutpcy.
However, before you take out a bankrutpcy, you might wonder how much it will cost you. You can decide if this legal move is right for you by consulting first with an experienced lawyer that practices bankrutpcy law.
Retainer and Legal Fees
When you take out a bankrutpcy, your bankrutpcy attorney will charge you a retainer fee, as well as any and all applicable legal fees. Some lawyers charge a flat fee that includes al of the legal costs and retainer associated with filing a basic case. Others charge by-the-hour for all of their services.
Regardless, you will need to pay your bankrutpcy attorney the retainer fee upfront before your case can be filed. Once you pay the retainer fee, you may be billed for your case costs, which you can pay at a later date. Some lawyers may put a lien on assets, such as a future tax refund, that the lawyer can use to cover the costs of your case.
Chapter 7 Costs
When you file for a Chapter 7, you generally do not have to pay many, if any debts, after the case is discharged. In fact, you can get debts like payday loans, medical bills, credit card bills and many other types of unsecured debts discharged through this type of filing.
However, even after your case is discharged, you still may owe debts like back taxes to the state or IRS, student loans and civil judgments. If anything, you may be allowed to re-negotiate your payments on these types of debts, however.
Chapter 13
If you file a Chapter 13 case, you will have all of your debts reorganized and placed in a single lump sum. You will owe payments on this lump sum each month. You then will be given a reasonable amount of time to pay off the total amount that you owe.
For many Chapter 13 filings, people are given anywhere from three to six years to pay off their consolidated debts. At the end of those six years, some or all of the remaining debts may be discharged. Again, however, you will still owe any remaining balances on federal and state taxes, student loans and civil judgments.
It is important for you to avoid defaulting on your Chapter 13 bankrutpcy payments. If you default on the payments, you will find that the federal court garnishes your wages, seizes your assets and places a lien on any assets that you own.
By knowing how much that you will need to pay for bankrutpcy, you can determine if this legal move is right for you. Before you file, it is important for you to consult with an experienced and assertive bankrutpcy attorney. You can learn how to use the current bankrutpcy law to your advantage to resolve your debts.
