If you are under water on your mortgage (i.e. you owe more than the house is actually worth) and you are having difficulty making monthly mortgage payments, you may want to consider a short sale. This type of sale may benefit you in the long-run by avoiding a hit to...
Student Loans and Why They are Not Dischargeable in Bankruptcy
Imagine the following scenario: You have hit financial trouble and are contemplating bankruptcy to help get your financial house in order. You hope that bankruptcy will provide some respite from your financial follies and/or staggering debts. Unfortunately, this is not the case if you owe student loans. If you are...
Filing a Counterclaim in a Foreclosure Proceeding
Every year, hundreds of people and companies are sued on debts and delinquent mortgages. Some of these actions are, of course, legitimate and very much actionable. However, plenty of others are false, fabricated, and bring about a lot of unnecessary physical and financial stress and anxiety for the affected parties....
Understanding Frozen Assets in Bankruptcy
When someone files for bankruptcy, they may think they will literally lose everything to creditors. They have nightmares of wages garnished to the point where they will not be able to to put food on their plate. This is simply not accurate. In fact, in many cases, your personal bank...
Zombie Foreclosures and the Rights You Have When Faced with a Foreclosure Notice
In Florida, and across the country, many homeowners faced with a foreclosure notice pack up and just desert the home under the assumption that the bank will take over the property and sell it to someone else. However, after the 2008 real estate crash, many banks were confronted with thousands...
Understanding Florida Law on Wage Garnishment
If you owe substantial amounts of money to a creditor, you may be facing a potential wage garnishment. Some people mistakenly believe that if their wages are garnished, they will be left with virtually nothing to sustain themselves financially. That is not the case. Wage Garnishment Defined The United States...
Social Security Disability Fund May Be Exhausted in the Near Future
After running through five consecutive years of deficits, many experts anticipate that the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) Trust Fund is about to run dry in roughly two years. If Congress fails to take necessary action before 2016, there may be a 19 percent cut to SSDI benefits across the...
Common Reasons Why a Social Security Disability Claim is Rejected
Social Security Disability Insurance (commonly referred to as SSDI) is a federal program run by the Social Security Administration that provides monthly disability benefits to people who become disabled before their age of retirement and cannot earn enough money to support themselves. However, as per the latest statistics, almost one-third...
Exempt Assets and Bankruptcy in Florida
Many people mistakenly believe that once you declare bankruptcy, you are left with nothing. This is not true. In fact, Florida law categorically classifies a class of assets that are “exempt” from the effects of a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing. Homestead Exemptions Pursuant to Article X, Section 4 of the...
Understanding the Difference Between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is the federal legal process by which consumers and business entities can effectively eliminate all or a part of their pending debts during personal or financial hardships. There are different ways a person or business files for bankruptcy under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code: liquidation (Chapter 7 bankruptcy) and reorganization...