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The easy way to qualify financially for chapter 7 bankruptcy (i.e. without doing the means test) is by being under the median income. Despite inflation and low unemployment, the census bureau has determined that the median income for these household sizes has changed...
Even before recent double digit inflation and doubling of interest rates, we were starting to see seven-year car loans being the norm. For years, a reasonable car payment was $4-500, but now the average is $725. This article posits that there is a 20/4/7 rule, which...
It seems ironic that nobody needs to attend a budgeting class in order to go into debt, but in order to file bankruptcy and get out of debt, a person does need to attend a budgeting class. A recent article indicates that more and more states are now requiring...
I'm honored to again have been asked to speak before Minnesota bankruptcy attorneys at the annual bankruptcy institute, this time on the subject of avoiding common mistakes. Here is the brochure for the bankruptcy institute:...
Bankruptcy is not just for the indigent. Very typically what I see, are people who were chugging along doing fine, and then there's usually some sort of triggering event, whether it's an illness, accident, or injury, that causes them to lose their financial footing,...
A recent post explained the public outcry as it was learned that a big medical operation in the Twin Cities was denying care to people, even kids, who had unpaid medical debt. The Attorney General got involved to investigate whether this violated certain agreements...
Many of my clients have already tried various debt relief programs before realizing they need to file for bankruptcy. While there may be a few programs that work on a nonprofit basis, most of these programs are destined to fail, as they are heavily front end loaded...
Most large health institutions simply take it on the chin when you don't pay. They realize that if they stopped seeing their patients, then their patients will simply go to their competitors. While there is neither a law, nor an ethical rule, requiring that they...
Bankruptcy does temporarily result in a drop in someone’s credit score and a mark on their credit report. Of course, having a single, major negative mark on a credit report can actually do less harm than having multiple judgments and past-due accounts visible to...
The Department of Justice recently adjusted the median income figures, which are effective in bankruptcy cases filed after May 15. 2023. The median income is an important figure, as debtors below that figure are almost always assured a chapter 7 discharge. For chapter...