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No, not necessarily. Although sometimes it can get held up because of a disagreement between you and the Trustee.

When you file a St. Louis Chapter 13 bankruptcy, one of the key forms that need to be submitted to the court is a Chapter 13 plan. This plan describes in detail which creditors are to be paid, over what period of time, using which particular interest rate, and whether or not such payments will be made by the Trustee or the Debtor (i.e. the person who files for a St. Louis bankruptcy). Once all of this data is compiled, and the necessary calculations are made, you are your attorney will be in a good position to determine how much your monthly payment should be.

So let’s look at a particular example: let us assume that you have a mortgage on your house, but you have fallen behind on payments by four months. This arrearage equals $4,500, and will be paid back over the course of several years. In addition, let us further assume that you have a car loan with a balance of $17,000. This debt will also be paid back during the life of your Missouri Chapter 13 plan. And if you owe any tax debt, back child support, or overdue spousal support (i.e. alimony), these things will be paid back as well. In addition, it is possible that you will have to pay back a certain portion of your unsecured debt as well (things like credit cards, medical bills, payday loans, etc). But there are specific calculations that are used to determine how much of this debt is paid back.

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Yes, it will. The deficiency that results from the sale of a repossessed car or truck (or motorcycle, or boat, or any other form of transportation that was repossessed) is considered to be “unsecured” debt. Unsecured debts (or that portion of the debt that is described as unsecured) are subject to discharge in a St. Louis bankruptcy.

But let’s back up just a bit. When you take out a loan on a car (commonly referred to as “financing an automobile”), you are signing a contract in which you promise to make monthly payments to the creditor in order keep the asset. If you fall behind on the payments, the creditor can come take the asset back (this is why it is called a “repossession“; the creditor is taking back possession of the asset). There is a period of time that must pass before the creditor may resell the car, but once that period of time passes, the car will undoubtedly be sold.

What normally results from such a sale, however, is a “deficiency”. This occurs when the sale of the repossessed car brings in an amount that is less than the current balance. So for example, let’s say you owe $10,000 on the balance of the car loan when the automobile is repossessed. But when the car is resold by the creditor, it only sells for $5,000 (the market for repossessed cars is usually a lot cheaper). This would obviously result in a deficiency balance of $5,000. And it is this amount that the creditor can demand from you. If you are unable to pay this amount (either in a bulk payment, or through some sort of repayment plan), the creditor will most likely sue you for the $5,000 deficiency. Once they receive a judgment in their favor, the creditor can then move to garnish your wages, freeze your bank account, or placed a lien against your house.

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Posted in: Car Repossession
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Yes, it is possible to keep a motorcycle (or boat, or some other non-traditional form of transportation). But there are a couple of different things you should keep in mind before your case is filed.

The easiest way to help you understand how your motorcycle will be affected is if we look at the two major chapters of bankruptcy side by side: in a St. Louis Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you have to make the court aware of all the personal property you own. This obviously would include any and all modes of transportation, like a motorcycle. The motorcycle you own is either going to be paid in full (in other words, no lien is attached to it), or you have a loan against it (in other words, you are financing the bike by way of monthly payments).

In either scenario (whether the motorcycle is paid in full or it has a loan against it), the real question is whether is any equity in the bike. Equity is the amount of value (that exists on paper) beyond what is currently owed. So for instance, if you owe $5,000 on the balance of your loan, and the fair market value of the bike is $7,000, that means that there is $2,000 in equity (7000 – 5000 = 2000). In addition, you are given a $3,000 exemption to cover any equity in a vehicle. In the above scenario, the motorcycle will be completely exempted, and you will still have one thousand left over.

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No, that is not necessary at all. Some people are completely current on all their debts right before they file a St. Louis bankruptcy. And sometimes, individuals are several years behind on their bills before filing a petition.

The exact time you file a Missouri bankruptcy is dependent upon several factors. If you are facing a home foreclosure, and you wish to keep your house, then it will be necessary to file a case immediately. Or if your car has been repossessed, and you want the automobile back, it would be advisable to file as soon as possible. In both of these situations, there is a limited amount of time before either asset is disposed of. And once the car or house is sold, there is no getting it back.

Other factors that can make the filing of a St. Louis Chapter 7 bankruptcy or a St. Louis Chapter 13 bankruptcy more urgent are wage garnishments (in which your paycheck has being deducted up to 25% of your net earnings), bank levies (in which the creditor puts a freeze against your accounts, making it impossible for you to access the funds inside them), and a pending lawsuit (in which a creditor has sued you based on breach of contract). And of course, it should be noted that the overall stress that comes with having to deal with a great many creditors and collection agencies can be quite a burden to deal with as well. So if you are one of the many people who are at their wit’s end in putting up with such harassment, then filing sooner than later can give you a great deal of relief.

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In most cases, immediately. There are occasions, however, in which your payroll department may still deduct the garnishment from your next paycheck after filing a St. Louis bankruptcy. This almost always occurs when your next payday follows very closely in time to the actual date of filing the bankruptcy petition. So for instance, if the next time you are set to be paid is Friday, and your case is filed the day before (Thursday), then it is possible that your payroll department will make the deduction. This is because of internal procedures that it must follow that have nothing to do with your bankruptcy.

But even if the scenario described above does play out, the amount deducted on Friday will still be returned to you (because creditors are not entitled to funds after your bankruptcy is filed). This is true whether you file a St. Louis Chapter 7 bankruptcy or a St. Louis Chapter 13 bankruptcy. The most important factor to keep in mind is that once your Missouri bankruptcy is filed, the garnishment comes to an end.

When you file a bankruptcy, you are assigned a case number. This number is your unique identifier, and signals to the world that you are under the protection of the Bankruptcy Court and federal law. Your case number is generated immediately, and always starts with the last two digits of the year that you filed (for example, if you file in 2012, your case number will begin with 12). If you have a wage garnishment, your bankruptcy attorney will supply this number to the creditor who is garnishing you. Once the creditor receives this number, it will send what is called a “release of garnishment” to your payroll department, who will then remove the deduction from your paycheck.

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Posted in: Wage Garnishment
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No, not necessarily. The goal is to be in a situation in which you only have to pay back a certain portion of your unsecured debt (such as credit cards, medical bills, payday loans, etc).

A St. Louis Chapter 13 bankruptcy is described as a repayment plan over the course of three to five years, during which certain debts are paid back. Some of these debts take precedence over others. For instance, secured debts have the highest priority. These would be things like car loans and mortgage arrearage (i.e. the amount that you have fallen behind on your house payments), and other home-related debts like real estate taxes and sewer bills. The next highest priority would be basic tax debts (like income, personal property, and sales tax), and domestic support obligations (like back child support and spousal maintenance). The lowest priority given to debts inside a Missouri Chapter 13 bankruptcy is the unsecured variety (like credit cards).

So if you have to pay back your secured debts (like a car) and priority debts (like delinquent income taxes) in a Chapter 13, the real question is how much of the unsecured debt (like medical bills) do you have to pay back?

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No, it is not difficult or hard at all. The process can seem a little daunting at first, but that is mainly due to people’s (understandable) anxiety about filing in the first place. So long as you hire an experienced, knowledgeable firm to handle your case, you should be just fine.

The basic idea behind filing for bankruptcy in Missouri or Illinois is disclosure. If you take the time to properly disclose all pertinent information to the court and Trustee, you have already won half the battle. This means that you must make the court aware of any real estate that you own (house, land, or time share), of any personal property (clothes, furniture, or appliances), all sources of income (wages from a job, Social Security Income, unemployment benefits, or bonuses), and a full list of all your creditors (whether they are secured, unsecured, or priority). Disclosing all of your property (real or personal) does not mean that you will lose these items. More often than not, you will be able to keep your assets. But your initial primary duty is to simply let the court know what it is that you own.

When it comes to revealing your sources of income, it can be handled most of the time by giving your attorney all of your paystubs from the previous six (6) months. Once this data is entered, your attorney can figure out how much your household income is for the year. This will determine whether you are above or below the ‘median income level’ for your particular household size. So for instance, the average or median income for a household of four is: $67,255. If your household income is under this amount, you are considered to be a ‘below median income’ house. If your household income is over this amount, you are considered to be an ‘above median income’ house. This distinction is crucial, because it can make the difference between filing a St. Louis Chapter 7 bankruptcy or a St. Louis Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

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No, it may not. And if the debt collector does in fact ask you to make this kind of a payment, then it has violated federal law and your consumer rights. There is, however, a remedy for this behavior on the part of the collector.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is a federal statute that regulates what a collection agency can and can’t do when it attempts to collect on a debt. These are strict limitations, and if the collector infringes upon your rights by violating the act, then it must compensate you for its wrong-doing. One of the things the collector cannot do is ask you to send it a post-dated check (or other financial instrument) to go towards a debt that you owe. They also cannot accept a post-dated check that is more than five (5) days out. Specifically, the FDCPA states in Section 808(2) & (3):

“A debt collector may not use unfair or unconscionable means to collector or attempt to collect any debt. … the following conduct is a violation of this section: (2) The acceptance by a debt collector from any person of a check or other payment instrument postdated by more than five days unless such person is notified in writing of the debt collector’s intent to deposit such check or instrument not more than ten nor less than three business days prior to such deposit; (3) The solicitation by a debt collector of any postdated check or other postdated payment instrument for the purpose of threatening or instituting criminal prosecution. “

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Yes, there are a few debts that cannot be discharged in either a St. Louis Chapter 7 bankruptcy or a St. Louis Chapter 13 bankruptcy. These specific debts are described as non-dischargeable, and will therefore remain as debts that you will be obligated on. But understanding which exact debts these are, and what implications it has for your particular filing can be crucial.

When you file a Missouri or Illinois bankruptcy, you are under an obligation to list out all of your creditors (whether they are secured, unsecured, or priority in nature). Once each debt is properly classified, it is then the individual creditor’s job to file what is called a Proof of Claim. This is a document that is filed with the court, listing the creditor’s pertinent information (such as its name, address, and representative), the amount owed, account number and date of indebtedness, and depending on what kind of debt it is, documentation proving that the debt actually exists (like a Deed of Trust for a house loan). You and the Trustee are given an opportunity to examine the Proofs of Claim that are entered, and file an objection if it is believed that the POC was submitted in error.

If the debt is in the nature of a Domestic Support Obligation, then it is non-dischargeable. DSO’s are things like child support (current, or what has fallen into arrears), maintenance, and spousal support (what used to be called alimony). Most tax debt is considered to be an obligation for which you may not receive a discharge. There is an exception, however, for income tax debt that is three years or older and was timely filed. If that is the case, then it is possible to get that portion of income tax debt discharged along with the rest of your unsecured debts (such as credit cards, medical bills, and payday loans). Student loans are another example of that which cannot be gotten rid of in a bankruptcy. These debts (almost always owed to the federal government) are given a status of protection by the bankruptcy court.

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Yes, of course. When you file a Missouri or Illinois bankruptcy, having a large type of monthly expense is perfectly acceptable. However, if the expense is quite a bit larger than what would normally be spent by a household of comparable size, the United States Trustee may ask for documentation to prove up the expense. So long as you are able to provide such documentation, the expense you listed should be fine.

When you file a St. Louis Chapter 7 bankruptcy or a St. Louis Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the government allows you to list out your typical monthly expenses that are incurred by you and your family. This allowance is made because the government recognizes that such expenses are normal, and should therefore be taken into account. This is significant because being able to include these expenses puts you in a much position to pass the “Means Test.” The Means Test is a mathematical formula that was devised by Congress in 2005 to determine who is and who is not eligible to file a Chapter 7. If, after all sources of income and all allowable expenses are taken into consideration you fall below the median income level for your particular household size, you may file a Chapter 7 (so long as you have not filed such a petition in the previous eight (8) years).

This is why an expense such as that paid towards medical and dental costs each month is so relevant. So let’s suppose that you are a household of three (you, your spouse, and your child). Between you and your spouse, you only expend the normal amount on medical or dental costs each month (say around $50.00 per month). But your child has a couple of different medical issues that require a larger portion of your expenses to go towards healthcare (say around $300.00 per month). If this is in fact the case, then you can rightfully state that the total amount your household spends each month on medical-related expenses is about $350.00.

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