3 Things You Didn’t Know About Bankruptcy

Junger Rechtsanwalt im Büro. Anwalt für Recht und Gesetz.

Bankruptcy has a lot of culturally held and reinforced connotations — for instance, many think that it’s a last resort for people or businesses that have really hit rock bottom after having been unwise with their money. But the truth is that bankruptcy is actually a way for the government to help individuals or companies manage their debt, and to restructure their financial management in order to make repayments. Moreover, bankruptcy isn’t just limited to people who have been fiscally irresponsible — indeed, bankruptcies as a result of unpaid medical bills were filed by an estimated two million people in the United States during 2013.

There is a lot that the public doesn’t know about bankruptcy and bankruptcy proceedings, which is one of the reasons it is important to work with a local bankruptcy attorney if you seek to file at some point in your life. Check out these little known facts about bankruptcy to build your own knowledge base about it:

    • In order to file bankruptcy, a person must owe at least $1,000 — while it is uncommon for someone to file for such a small amount, everybody’s financial loan debt and situation are different, and they can all weigh heavily. For some people, a $5,000 debt load can be just as unmanageable as a $100,000 one.

>

    • Your credit will, in fact, recover. It is true that a Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays on your credit report for 10 years after it is arranged, but even during that time it is more than possible to apply for and receive different types of credit.

 

  • While household income is used to determine the length of time a person may remain in bankruptcy and what they will pay on a monthly basis, there is no income cap for declaring bankruptcy.

A Chapter 7 bankruptcy case can take around six months to complete, and after that time, a bankruptcy trustee will have worked out a plan with your creditors so that you can start repaying your debts, restructuring your finances in general, and living your life again. If you see this as an option, contact a local bankruptcy attorney today to get started.