Diamond Speaks His Mind on Bankruptcy and Related Topics

Copies Vs. Originals at Your Bankruptcy's 341 Meeting

Required by law, the first request that a trustee for a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy makes of a debtor is to see his driver's license and social security card in order to establish the identity of the debtor.  The trustee is fulfilling his obligation to identify the debtor by seeing an original driver's license, because it has a picture of the debtor and then matches the social security number against the name on the card and then compares the same against the bankruptcy paperwork.  There are, of course, other forms of identification that will work just as well such as a military identification card.  What will not work is a copy of any of the items mentioned, they must be originals.

If a debtor does not have these items with him/her, at least in El Paso TX, is that, in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case, the meeting is continued to a later date, which means you have to take another day off of work and in the case of the Chapter 7 bankruptcy you must bring the originals by the Trustee's office within several days after your 341 Meeting, not as bad as having the meeting continued, but still inconvenient.  This may seem petty, still copies vs. originals will delay your bankruptcy moving forward.

A NEW EVIL HAS EMERGED - DEBT RELIEF STOREFRONTS

Oh my God, today I spoke with a woman who was considering bankruptcy as a way to get out from under her credit card debt.  She like most people would rather pay off her debts than file for bankruptcy especially when you can wrap your arms around your debt total.  I applaud your ethics and values.  Sometimes, based on how much you owe in credit card debt it could take years and years and years to pay off especially due to mounting interest rates.  Some of these debt relief storefronts are no better in helping you than the exorbitant interest rates charged by the credit card companies.  Getting back to this woman I spoke to today, her debts today were approximately $6,000.  The company she was (at least I hope it's in the past now)  considering working with was going to charge her on top of her  monthly payment towards her credit card debt  - a service charge of $300 per month during the lifetime of the  payment schedule.  She was told that it would take approximately 24 months.  What is wrong with this picture?  A $6,000 debt without additional interest charges would cost this woman more than $13,000.  People do the math!!  I know how it feels to have bills you can't pay and to have creditors breathing down your neck.  I know how badly that can make you feel and so you think anyone that will work with you is a blessing.  NOT................  Read, read, read the fine print........... You're not buying a car ............. you're paying off debts.   DO THE MATH. 

If you choose to handle your credit card debt through a debt relief agency seek out a non- profit agency.  Or consider filing bankruptcy, Chapter 7 where you erase entirely your credit card debt as well as all unsecured debts if you qualify.

Pay Day Loan Companies Are Cunning!

Lots of people seeking help from a bankruptcy lawyer to file a Chapte 7 (eliminate unsecured creditors) or a chapter 13, have one or more payday loans.  Payday loans are difficult to deal with for both the client and the bankruptcy lawyer.  The companies that offer these loans seem to know every trick in the book to continue  receiving payments, as well as avoiding having their addresses known so they cannot be notified of a bankruptcy filing.  The only way to prevent such a lender from collecting on their loan is to close the bank account upon which the lender collects its funds.  Merely having a zeo balance does not seem to work, inasmuch as many people have accounts that have overdraft protection or at the least, will incur a charge for every returned check.  Closing their bank accounts presents a few challenges to many clients for reasons such as automatic withdrawals for monthly payments and/or direct deposits of checks. If you are going to stop these folks from collecting, you must promptly close your account and open a new account at a different bank.

 

 

 

 

 

Harassing Phone Calls From Creditors Can Be Stopped

A consumer being harassed by ‘Debt Collectors' has significant rights under federal law: including the right to demand that a Creditor stop communicating with you.   Under the "Debt Collection Practices Act", a federal statute, there are two (2) ways to stop those harassing phone calls or for that matter any form of communication to you. 

1- To inform the Creditor that you are being represented by an attorney and providing the Creditor with the name, address and telephone number of the attorney you have hired. The applicable provision can be found in Section 1692c(a)(2) of the Statute.

• 2- Write a letter to the Creditor informing the Creditor that you are not going to pay the debt and that you wish all forms of communication to stop. The applicable provision can be found in Section 1692c(c).