Understanding The Bankruptcy Process

If you are having some financial trouble, you might want to consider filing for bankruptcy. Of course, you need to know whether you are truly in a bad enough spot to consider it. To help you decide this, you might want to review the following signs of financial trouble that may indicate the need for bankruptcy.

You Are Receiving Daily Bill Collector Calls

Sometimes, a bill collector will call when you accidentally pay bills late. The key to knowing if it is a problem is realizing how often they are calling. If you are getting calls on an almost daily basis, ignoring your phone calls because it is a bill collector, or dread checking your phone after a long day at work, you might need to start thinking about going through bankruptcy.  

You should never be in a position where you feel like you are overwhelmed by the calls of bill collectors. The occasional bill collector call is typical, but when it becomes abnormal, it is time to step back and rethink your financial situation.

Your Owned Assets Have Less Value Than Your Debts

Sit down with a pen and paper and add up all of the value of your assets. Include property and anything else that could be considered valuable and put it in the list. Your assets include things such as your home, vehicles, recreational vehicles, boats, extra land, savings accounts, stocks, and your retirement fund.

Once you are done with your asset list, you will then want to add up all of your debt. If your debt is higher than the value of your assets, bankruptcy may be a viable option to give you a new start. If you have more in assets, you might still be able to file for bankruptcy, but it may need to be a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, which is a court-ordered repayment plan that you can afford. Otherwise, the bankruptcy courts may want you to liquidate your assets in order to pay off the creditors.

You Have Maxed Out All Of Your Credit Cards

If you are in a position where all of your credit cards are maxed out and you are still living paycheck to paycheck, you may need to file for bankruptcy. This is especially true if you are not able to make payments that are any larger than the minimum payment, as you will find yourself stuck in debt for many years.

With the following things in mind, you should have no trouble deciding whether it is time to talk to a bankruptcy attorney like those at Wiesner & Frackowiak, LC.