Oak Park Real Estate & Estate Planning Blog

If you are considering the possibility of filing for consumer bankruptcy , you are probably wondering how your bankruptcy filing will affect your property. Indeed, many consumers are worried that filing for bankruptcy will mean that they will lose all of their assets, or that all of their property will be liquidated. This is not how consumer bankruptcy works, and our Oak Park bankruptcy attorneys want to make sure you have the information you need. The following are three key things to know about asset liquidation in personal bankruptcy cases. 1. Assets are Only Liquidated in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Cases First, you should know that assets will only be liquidated in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case if you are an individual or married couple filing for bankruptcy. In Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases, assets are not liquidated. Instead, in a Chapter 13 case, the debtor creates an approved repayment plan through which she or he repays debts over a period of three to five years and is able to get caug...

When you are getting ready to file for consumer bankruptcy , it is essential to create a checklist to be sure that you have all materials and documents in place, and that you have all of your bankruptcy plans in order. While bankruptcy checklists may vary slightly depending upon the individual debtor’s circumstances and the type of bankruptcy the debtor is filing for, the following elements will most likely be included on a majority of consumer bankruptcy checklists. While you are working on your checklist, it is critical to begin working with an experienced Oak Park bankruptcy lawyer on your case. U.S. bankruptcy law is extremely complicated, and making even a minor filing in your petition or during the bankruptcy process can affect your case. As such, you should always work with a bankruptcy attorney from the start. In the meantime, however, the following checklist can help you as you begin to plan for your personal bankruptcy case. Eligibility and Requirements First, your checklist...

Struggling with immense debt can be extremely anxiety-inducing and difficult for individuals and families in the Oak Park area, and debt problems can be especially complicated when you are worried you may be at risk of losing your home. While homeowners had certain mortgage forbearance options in the earlier months of the pandemic, many protections have since expired, and many debtors are struggling to pay their bills while fearing that they could lose their family house. Are there options for keeping your house in a consumer bankruptcy case? In both Chapter 7 bankruptcy and Chapter 13 bankruptcy, there are options for keeping your home, but Chapter 13 bankruptcy specifically can stop a foreclosure and allow you to get back on track with mortgage payments. Our Oak Park bankruptcy attorneys can say more. File for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and Reaffirm Your Mortgage Debt Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a type of liquidation bankruptcy, which means that the bankruptcy process will involve liquidatin...

Do consumer bankruptcy trends reflect larger economic trends in the U.S. at any given point in time? According to a recent news release from the University of Illinois, a new paper co-written by law professor Robert M. Lawless suggests that, over the last 30 years, we can learn about larger economic issues by looking into consumer bankruptcy data. Ultimately, the paper suggests that we can understand specific “economic stressors faced by U.S. debtors” by examining information about consumer bankruptcies from the last three decades, and that we may be able to rely on that information for the good of consumers in the present and future. Indeed, Lawless’s research could “afford policymakers a rough blueprint of how to make the current bankruptcy system more efficient and effective.” Details of the Consumer Bankruptcy Research The paper is the work of Lawless and two co-authors, including Pamela Fooehy at Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School and Deborah Thorne of the University of Idaho. In co...

When you are considering the possibility of filing for divorce around the same time you are thinking about filing for consumer bankruptcy , it is critical to seek advice from an Oak Park bankruptcy attorney about your situation. Depending upon your circumstances, filing for divorce before you file for bankruptcy could complicate your circumstances immensely, and vice versa. To be clear, there are some situations in which filing for bankruptcy before divorce makes the most sense, while there are also situations in which filing for bankruptcy after divorce will make the most sense. How can you know what you should do? The best way to know for certain whether you should file a petition for bankruptcy before or after you get started on a divorce case is to seek advice from a bankruptcy lawyer. In the meantime, the following information can help you to understand when bankruptcy should come before divorce and when it should come afterward. Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Usually Should Happen Before ...