Oak Park Real Estate & Estate Planning Blog

Last month, we discussed a significant federal lawsuit against Navient , a prominent student loan company. Yet the student lender is facing more than just a federal lawsuit. According to a press release from the Office of the Attorney General of Illinois, Lisa Madigan has also sued Navient and Sallie Mae for what the office describes as “rampant student loan abuses.” Why is Madigan’s lawsuit important for consumers in Oak Park and throughout the Chicago area? In short, as the press release explains, Madigan has sought restitution for “all borrowers affected by Navient’s unlawful practices ” and has requested in her lawsuit that the lender “rescind or reform all contracts or loan agreements between Navient and any Illinois consumers affected by the company’s unlawful practices.” Madigan’s complaint emphasizes the importance of consumer protection in Illinois , and it also highlights that many Chicago-area residents are not being treated fairly when it comes to student loan...

Have you been contacted by a person claiming to be a debt collector who is seeking to recover a debt you allegedly owe? If so, you are not alone. According to a recent report from CBS Chicago , such parties claiming to be debt collectors are on the rise, and they are scamming Chicago-area residents. These alleged debt collectors are part of schemes known as “phantom debt collection scams,” since they involve the attempt to collect on a debt that the consumer does not actually owe. How can you avoid becoming a victim in a debt-collection scam ? What should you do if you have been targeted by a fake debt collector? How Do Phantom Debt Collection Scams Work? Now, you might be thinking to yourself: I would never agree to make payment on a debt that I did not owe. But the scam is not always that simple. Parties at the center of debt-collection scams often target consumers who do actually owe debts (to someone or to some entity), and they prey on the fact that these c...

If you are struggling to repay debts in Oak Park and are looking at different options, you may be considering debt management plans. In many cases, debt management plans are pitched as an alternative to consumer bankruptcy . However, according to an article in the Chicago Tribune , sometimes debt management plans might not be as workable or as affordable as they initially sound. When you are dealing with seemingly insurmountable debt, it is possible that a debt management plan is not the best option for you. Although these plans can be helpful to some people, in other situations, personal bankruptcy could be the better choice for helping you to get back on track. How can you know whether a debt management plan or consumer bankruptcy is the right decision in your specific case? Debt Management Plans Do Not Work for Everyone How do debt management plans work? Typically, debtors will work with a credit counseling agency, and the agency will work out an agreement with...

When consumers who owe debt receive calls from debt collectors , do they tend to feel threatened by these contacts? According to a recent news release from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), a report from the government agency determined that “over one-in-four consumers contacted by debt collectors felt threatened.” The report was based on a large-scale national survey—the first of its kind—to address consumers’ relationships with debt collectors and consumer feelings concerning the debt collection process. The report drew startling conclusions about how debt collectors treat consumers, and the findings are important for any consumer to consider, as well as for anyone concerned about fair debt collection practices . CFPB Survey Highlights Problems in Debt Collection Practices The CFPB survey helped to show that even debt collection practices that may not be in violation of the law still make consumers feel unprotected and, as the report noted, threatened...

In a recent decision from the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals —which includes residents of Oak Park, Illinois—the court ruled in favor of a bank as opposed to the debtor who had filed for consumer bankruptcy protection. More specifically, the case concerns the co-debtor stay and whether a spouse (who has not filed for bankruptcy protection) can benefit from the co-debtor stay in certain situations involving the other spouse’s application for bankruptcy protection. To better understand the implications of the case, we would like to take a closer look at the facts and to discuss the Seventh Circuit’s holding. Facts of the Case in Smith v. Capital One Bank The case at issue here is Smith v. Capital One Bank (2016). The facts of the case, according to the court, are as follows: A debtor, Karen Smith, filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy back in 2011. Before she filed for bankruptcy, her husband applied for and obtained a Capital One credit card, which he “used for consume...