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Marne Law Group
HOW BANKRUPTCY CAN HELP YOU
Bankruptcy laws are designed to give people with debt trouble a fresh start. We also advise our clients on how to manage their credit after bankruptcy.
There is no truth to the urban legend that you have to go for seven years with bad credit after filing bankruptcy. Bankruptcy will be on your credit report for 10 years, but even so you can have good credit in just three years. Our clients often have purchased cars and even qualified for mortgages two to three years after bankruptcy.
People who file bankruptcy are often surprised by how quickly they’ll start getting credit card offers in the mail again. Offers for unsecured or secured credit cards (which require a deposit to the bank) with a low limit can arrive within a month of the debt discharge. Some of these cards are unsecured. Some are even offered to people by the same credit card company that was listed on the bankruptcy.
If you or someone you know needs our help, please call us today for a free telephone consultation. We have appointments available Monday through Saturday and your first visit to our office is free. Our office is located at 30 North San Pedro Road which is directly across the street from the famous Marin Civic Center and can be easily reached by bus and the new smart train.
Call or come in for a complimentary consultation. CONTACT US TODAY!
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE FILING A BANKRUPTCY PETITION
Though bankruptcy filings are sometimes of only way to resolve debts, they are generally a final alternative. Before deciding if you should file for bankruptcy, consider steps to repair your debt.
Credit Counseling.
Seek help from a nonprofit credit counselor. Churches, charitable organizations and government agencies might provide counseling without charge, or they can refer you to a counselor. The goal is to review your finances and suggest solutions for your debt.
Debt Management.
The next step is to visit a nonprofit credit counseling firm that can devise a specific plan for managing debt. A plan might consider which debts to pay first and detail how your income will be applied to debt. You can meet with debt managers personally or use online tools to set goals and create a plan. The plan might involve establishing a repayment pecking order, having you focus on paying down high-interest debts first while making minimum payments on other debts. Debt management plans also take 3-5 years to complete.
Debt Consolidation.
Some firms will, for a fee, work with your creditors to devise a debt consolidation plan. If you owe balances on multiple credit cards, a debt consolidator will create a plan that allows you to make a single monthly payment which will then be used to repay what you owe.
Debt Settlement.
As a final step to remediate debt problems and avoid bankruptcy, a nonprofit debt settlement firm negotiates with creditors to reduce what you owe in exchange for a workable payment plan to which you commit. Though this strategy is hardly foolproof, creditors sometimes are willing to take reduced payments if they know they can recover part of what they’re owed.
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