Debt – Page 3 – Bankruptcy Attorney News – Peter Francis Geraci Law, call us at 800 CALL PFG

There is NO such thing as Judgment Proof!

Only someone who has discharged a debt in bankruptcy can be “judgment proof” as to that debt.

Wait? What? Absolutely no such thing as judgment proof. Below is an article written by Attorney Peter Francis Geraci. Read more articles by PFG @ https://w ww.infotapes.com/Articles

“Judgment proof” THERE IS NO SUCH THING. Only someone who has discharged a debt in bankruptcy can be “judgment proof” as to that debt.

Otherwise, it is a fallacy perpetuated by the uninformed.

Even if someone has only SS and no property to be attached, a creditor may file a suit, entering a judgment, garnish, record liens, establishing citation proceedings, seeking to garnish them, etc A debtor still has to appear in court and claim an exemption or appear at a citation so it does not turn into a rule to show cause or a body attachment.

Judgments remain for 10 years and can be renewed multiple times, and there is nothing preventing a creditor from collecting on a judgment with property acquired in the future. Often, debtors do not want to deal with all of this, and that is why they file bankruptcy. It is entirely false for someone to allege a debtor does not need to file bankruptcy because they are “judgment proof.”

Dial 1-800-CALL-PFG for a free phone mini-consultation, or make an appointment online 24/7 at www.infotapes.com. Bankruptcy laws are in place to help you. Who knows bankruptcy like Geraci Law? Geraci Law has 30,000 5-star reviews since November 2016!

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com

Beverages & Budgeting!

Beverages & Budgeting – take a look at your monthly expenses, let’s see if Geraci Law can help!

School is starting, the weather is changing – it’s almost time for Football. So let’s take advantage of a nice weekend and think about finances.

Geraci Law has the tools to help! It does not matter if you are trying to figure out a savings plan or if it’s time to take a good hard look at what your expenses are. If you are seeing on the monthly budget that you are operating in the negative – it might be time to realign.

So pick out your favorite cold one, grab a calculator (there’s one on your iPhone) and let’s figure out your budget!

Check out below. You can fill in your monthly expenses. Take note – your Starbucks coffee (a beverage part of budgeting) should list under Entertainment. Tip: go to your bank account and look how much you are spending each month.

Next – let’s take a look at your income. You can use this as a guide! Tip: if you are paid salary, use one paycheck since your income does not change. If you are paid hourly, take the average of the last 3 months.

After that, take the amount in TOTAL MONTHLY INCOME and subtract from your Total from the monthly expense worksheet….

THIS is your disposable income – it’s the amount you have left at the end of the month to either save or spend.

When you have debt including credit cards, Pay Day loans, medical bills (note bill NOT expense) the minimum payment is substracted from your disposable income NOT from your expenses.

If the amount is high and you are not paying DOWN the balance on the debt, reexamine the budget. Go back to the disposable income amount – if you eliminate the debt payment, this is the money that goes back to YOU.

If you have $1,000 in disposable income every month and are paying $1,000 in minimum payments – if you are then using your credit card to pay the monthly expenses (from the first worksheet) your plan is NOT working.

Instead if you account for the monthly expenses where you can pay for the bill without relying on credit, you have disposable income to put into a savings account. $1,000 per month for 12 months is $12,000 an amazing start to retirement, paying for college, down payment on a home, etc.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

So How Does Bankruptcy Work?

There’s a ton of information about debt, financial resources and bankruptcy. The B word can be intimidating and maybe it’s time to answer the question – How does bankruptcy filing work?

Attorney Peter Francis Geraci answers this question and reviews what you can expect when filing for bankruptcy.

Organize Your Debt

1. How MUCH debt do you have? Is it around $10,000 or more in debt you can eliminate, like medical bills, lawsuits, credit cards, personal loans, repossessions? Make a list of all your debt and what it is for. You can find a form at Infotapes.com. Remember, some debts don’t appear on credit reports, so gather your bills, and even old debts can chase you for 5 or 10 years or more

2. What KIND of debt do you have? So if you have $10,000 or more in debt, is it the kind you can get rid of, or the kind you want to pay, like vehicles or credit unions, or is it just government student loans?

So, you can make a short list, using our form, you can get a free credit report to see what your creditors are reporting to credit bureaus.

Consult with a Law Firm

3. Get a free phone mini-consultation. You will need competent advice on whether Chapter 7 or 13 is right for the type and amount of debt, and also for your income level. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can pick your Chapter, because you don’t know as much as Geraci Law’s highly experience attorneys.

4. Start uploading your documents. If we decide that we can help you, we’ll give you access to the Geraci Law Client Corner, run an Experian soft-pull, get a Kelly Blue Book value on your vehicles, estimate your house value if you have one, and more. You can then upload necessary documents to our Geraci Law Client Corner client portal, such as pay stubs, bank statements, contracts, bills and tax returns.

Meet with a Bankruptcy Lawyer for Free

5. Get a virtual or in-office interview and get your options, costs, and retain us, little or no money down. Figure a payment plan, and you’ve got yourself a lawyer! We’ll refer you to take a 20 minute online finance course, which costs $25. Take the course before you file. You can take my credit counseling course online for free to see what it’s like.

Review and Sign your Bankruptcy Paperwork

6. We’ll then prepare a bankruptcy petition of about 50 pages for you to review, and assemble the necessary documents you have uploaded, and after you sign it, we’ll file it with the Court.

File your Bankruptcy in Court

7. After we file in court, we’ll post all your documents on your secure Geraci Law Client Corner portal, where you will get all your messages, instructions, documents, and even videos about your meeting of creditors and taking your second Debtor Education Course. The bankruptcy court requires you to take the second course to get a discharge. I teach it, and the Administrative office of the U.S. Trustee in bankruptcy certifies it. The court is one of the only courses actually taught by an experienced bankruptcy attorney.

Attend your Meeting of the Creditors

8. We will go with you, either by Zoom or in-person, to a brief interview with a Court appointed bankruptcy Trustee to go over your petition and approve it. If you filed Chapter 13, your plan will be confirmed and you will make the necessary monthly payment. If you filed Chapter 7, we will handle any paperwork with vehicles or mortgages you want to keep, and you will get a discharge around 4 months from date of filing.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

How to Find the Best Bankruptcy Attorney for a Reasonable Fee

Why pay the same and not get the name?

Below is an article written by Attorney Peter Francis Geraci. Read this and more at https://www.infotapes.com/Articles.

Here is an “unknown” attorney advertising for bankruptcy on Google Local Leads. Know that when choosing a lawyer, there are BIG differences! Anyone with $10 can put up a Google Ad. This person looks nice, but is

a. a one person shop

b. less than 20 reviews and other ratings not good

c. claims to have 5 office locations sure, how when you are 1 person?

d. Licensed for over 10 years but nothing to tell where, no CV on website. (sure sign of trouble)

e. lists a cell phone for an office phone

f. claims to answer every call in person! and text. must be very busy. or not.

g. apparently just blew into town? claims to have experience but no clue where

h. only speaks English

f. LICENSE? one revoked, probably abandoned, just resigned another, only remaining license just “updated”. no mention of federal court admission which is required for bankruptcy law. Probably has a federal license, but kind of sloppy not to mention it.

So, you pick this ADVERTISEMENT? why? because you have an inferiority complex, you don’t know how to select an attorney, you think you are going to “get a cheap lawyer” for a 50 page federal bankruptcy filing to eliminate 40,000 in debt and get experienced advice?

Then you find out that ALL LAWYERS CHARGE ABOUT THE SAME, MOST EXACTLY THE SAME, for Chapter 13, and within a couple hundred of each other for Chapter 7, depending on the type of Chapter 7, and there are over 15 types!

Seems to me this attorney is one step away from bankruptcy, totally unknown, working out of a basement, instead of 100 attorneys and staff, 500 years of combined experience, 40,000 FIVE STAR REVIEWS, real offices, Client Corner portal, PFG Debtor Education, and more!

We don’t like to “sell against the competition” but they sure like to do it to us….paper does not refuse ink, and Google doesn’t refuse paid ads!

Be careful. Why? Rumor has it that that attorneys FIRED from law firms for making phony entries about client matters, or just plain incompetence, or hiding their past, end up as solo practitioners, legends in their own mind.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Bankruptcy Filing Will Not Save a Going Business

Geraci Law lawyers have been practicing bankruptcy for a combined total of 500 years, some as many as 25 or more than 40 years. Our advice is: “if you are running a business that is failing, do not file bankruptcy. Close the business, file your tax returns, and come and see us in two years”.

Read new article from Attorney Peter Francis Geraci titled, “Bankruptcy Filing will not Save a Going Business.” Read more articles at https://www.infotapes.com/articles/news/75/bankruptcy-filing-will-not-save-a-going-business/

Full article is below.

Small business bankruptcy or self-employed bankruptcy is usually a bad idea

By Peter Francis Geraci

Why Self- employed and small businesses DO NOT QUALIFY for bankruptcy relief.

Bankruptcy, whether it’s Chapter 7, 11 (whether a regular chapter 11 or the new subchapter 5), 13, does not solve the common problem of lack of money. Most self-employed people were small businesses have your regular income, and often can’t even meet payroll or regular living expenses. Businesses are doomed to fail. Bankruptcy will not solve that problem.

There are many good reasons:

if you have a corporation, or an LLC, and you’re not operating as a self-employed person, Corporation filing Chapter 7 results in the corporation getting by a bankruptcy trustee

corporations can’t file under Chapter 13. Corporations that file under Chapter 11 usually get converted to chapter 7 on that liquidated, the fees are very high, and it’s only for corporations that have positive cash flow, or can get new financing to continue operating. Its like trying to save the Titanic.

if you are a small business that is not incorporated or an LLC, it is usually a bad idea to file either chapter 7 or 13 total businesses been closed for at least two years

A small business that files Chapter 7 gets the business liquidated by a bankruptcy trustee. You can do that yourself, way cheaper. It is a much better idea to simply close it if you don’t want to operate it, pay all the taxes doing file all the necessary returns, wait two years and see if anybody is bothering you.

In order to reorganize your debt with Chapter 13, you have to have enough regular income in order to pay your regular business expenses, and then pay taxes on the profit, and then take home after taxes enough money to pay your regular living expenses, with at least $300 left over to devote to paying creditors. Very few self-employed businesses produce enough income to cover regular business expenses, let alone living expenses

Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 filing for individuals who are regularly employed is often a wonderful solution to the problem of too much data and not enough money. When a business is involved, the paperwork doubles or triples. You must answer questions under oath, about business financial affairs, and you’re not going to discharge payroll taxes if you haven’t paid them, or other employee obligations. In addition, a copy of your bankruptcy will go to the IRS, and you will be required to file your state local and federal tax returns before getting any bankruptcy relief.

We have seen many bad things happen to individuals who go to lawyers who are only too eager to take a couple files and can file a Chapter 7 or 11 for a business that is either still operating, or hasn’t been closed for more than two years. We’ve seen it turn into a real mess, and in some cases into federal indictments. We could go into a lot of examples, but if you are planning to file a business bankruptcy, we suggest that you don’t. Either tough it out, and hope that things get better, or close it and pay your taxes and file your returns. If you can’t pay the taxes, file returns anywhere, because you may be able to discharge income taxes if you file truthful returns come and see us in two or three years! Be very careful to pay your employee taxes and withholding because if you were supposed to turn over withheld funds to the government and you don’t, there is no statute of limitations about discharge.

There are a lot of small businesses that fail. Chances are good that 70% of small businesses will fail within three years. If that happens to your business, you should not file a bankruptcy immediately, if at all. You should

wait until the businesses closes
file all tax returns even if you can’t pay the taxes due
keep your books and records because that is another requirement,
return all property that is security for a loan, to those lender
don’t do anything weird like transfer or hide assets, bankruptcy judges hate that

and then and only then come and see us about cleaning up the mess and getting a fresh start after the businesses closed. Be very careful if you don’t heed this advice and some attorney wants to file a bankruptcy when a business is still open, and you haven’t filed all tax returns. You could be paying a lot of money for nothing and even get into big trouble.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Debtor’s Prison

Below is an article written by Attorney Peter Francis Geraci, read this and more @ Bankruptcy and Debt Articles | Geraci Law (infotapes.com)

The reason there is a bankruptcy law in the United States is that most of the founding fathers came from England, where there was no bankruptcy law. In fact, many of the members of the Constitutional Convention had personal experience being thrown into debtors’ prison in England. Some avoided debtors’ prison by fleeing to America. Some of the colonies were friendly to people in debt, and some were not. But everyone in 1787 agreed that Congress should make uniform bankruptcy laws. So that is in Article I Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, our country’s governing law.

Check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshalsea for a description of the most horrible of the debtor’s prisons in London, if you don’t count the one that they dug out under the river Thames. Charles Dickens novel Little Dorritt is about a family who grew up in the debtor’s prison Marshalsea, where the father spent 20 years imprisoned for a debt no one could figure out how to pay. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Dorrit There was even some of that in America until 1833, according to https://www.winonapost.com/Article/ArticleID/49823/Swamp-Water-Jurisprudence-Debtors-prisons-havent-gone-away

But now, the creditors can only use the courts to determine if you are liable to pay them, and if you are, use the courts to give you notice before they take your property or bank account. And you don’t have to serve time in debtor’s prison, you can file a plan for debt relief under Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. If you live in a state where Geraci Law practices, you can get help from us, just visit www.infotapes.com

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Geraci Law NOW taking cases in the Sunshine State!

Geraci Law is ready to help you file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy in the great state of Florida!

Geraci Law is ready to help you file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy in the great state of Florida. We’re bringing our same great service to help people in Florida.

According to Experian, the average consumer debt increased in Florida from $79,341 to $81,504! Do you feel like the debt will never end? It’s time to break the cycle! Read https://peterfrancisgeracilaw.com/2020/02/18/cycle-of-debt/

If you are making the minimums and not paying down the principle, maybe it’s time to look at an alternative approach. Attorneys are available by phone to talk about options.

Geraci Law offers a free consultation to figure a plan of action! It’s a simple phone call to 312.332.1800.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

How stupid is “debt settlement” from most non-attorney companies? Really stupid.

Phony debt settlement schemes make you poorer than you were before.

Read article below or more written by Attorney Peter Francis Geraci at https://www.infotapes.com/Articles.

An article in the May 23, 2021 New York times points out how stupid most debt settlement operations are for those struggling with credit cards. On page 39 the story of a single mother and her son is told. The story claims that this single mother is spending 100 a month on credit cards that are not included in another $300 she pays to a private company, to “bundle $27,000 in debt from nine creditors”

The story says that she was paying $246 every other Wednesday, but dropped it to $100 when she lost her 2nd job waitressing. Then creditors “got pushy” and one is taking it to court, and she “just got handed papers from another creditor the other day and started crying”

This sad. Poor lady is getting terrible advice. First, she will never pay back $27,000 in debt at either $500 a month, or $200 a month, unless she gets lucky and pays out that $100 for the next 10 years or more, and never misses.

Each creditor is dividing $200 a month, minus the fees to this “Debt Relief” company, so they might be getting $20 each. Second, look what happened. 2 of the 9 creditors actually filed lawsuits. Some “Debt Relief” Third, she could have filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy for $200, and she would have been done with it all long again, and included the other debt she is paying $100 a month on.

It is plainly beyond her means to pay even $300 a month to creditors, given her precarious financial position. Not once does the New York Times mention bankruptcy relief, which is the obvious solution to her debt problems. The budget in the article doesn’t make any sense, either.

This is pretty typical of publications like the New York Times, who have some kind of weird agenda, telling stories that don’t help anyone understand how to deal with debt. Attorney Peter Francis Geraci of Geraci Law LLC sees examples of this all the time: well-meaning people getting fleeced by “debt relief” when they should be filing Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

How to Save Inherited Property from Foreclosure

Below is an article written by Attorney Peter Francis Geraci with instruction on how to stop foreclosure on an inherited property. Read more articles written by PFG at https://www.infotapes.com/Articles.

At Geraci Law, we sometimes have a client whose relative died, and they are an heir. For instance, Son is Mom’s only heir, Mom passes away, but Mom’s house is in her name, she left no will, and she had a $40,000 mortgage with payments of $600 a month.

Son obviously wants to get the title changed into his name, so he will have to file a lawsuit in Probate Court to get an Order Declaring Heirship and Distribution of the Estate. This may take 6 or 8 months. In the meantime, Son finds out that the mortgage is a year behind, and the mortgage company his filed a foreclosure.

Son wants to prevent the mortgage company from foreclosing, force it to accept a payment plan on the arrears, and force the mortgage company to accept payments on the mortgage going forward, since he does not want to pay it off. Son wants to keep paying Mom’s mortgage because he can’t refinance until the Probate Court transfers the property to him.

Good news. Son can file Chapter 13 to propose a payment plan on the past due mortgage payments, and force the mortgage company to accept his payments on mom’s mortgage in the future.

One way to get the title to the property in Son’s name immediately, if there are other heirs who do not want any part of the property, would be to get all the heirs to sign an affidavit of heirship, identifying all the heirs and stating that they all agree on the transfer of the property to Son, and have them each sign on a warranty deed from them to Son. Then, record the affidavit of heirship at the recorder of deeds, and then record the deed. Son now not only has an “equitable inheritance interest” that would enable him to file Chapter 13 regarding the property, but also title interest. Assuming Mom had no other property that required Probate, his problem is solved!

Many mortgages contain a “due on sale clause” stating that if the borrower dies or files bankruptcy, the full amount of the mortgage balance becomes immediately due. That clause is not enforceable, because of a provision in the Garn-St. Germain Act of 1982 12 U.S. Code § 1701j–3.”Preemption of due-on-sale prohibitions” which exempted inherited property from having a “due on sale” clause enforced. The Act does permit acceleration of a mortgage when property is sold, but not when a person dies and the heirs want to make the mortgage payments.

The other situations where a “due-on-sale clause’ can’t be enforced are when a home equity loan or other lien is placed, when a surviving joint tenant takes title, on transfer to a spouse or child of a co-owner because of divorce and the spouse or child will life in the home, or when a borrower transfers property into an inter-vivos living trust.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Are You Ready For a Fresh Start in 2021?

Geraci Law can help you take back control of your finances. Filing for bankruptcy could give you a fresh start in 2021.

2020 is over (finally) and everyone is ready for a new and better year. But what are your options if you have debt you can’t afford to pay? Are you paying minimums only to use the credit again because your cash is gone?

Geraci Law can help you take back control of your finances. Filing for bankruptcy could give you a fresh start in 2021. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy could discharge or eliminate obligation to debt balances like credit cards, personal loans, medical bills, etc. You could keep things like your house and car – the only thing to lose is the debt!

Filing a bankruptcy could change your life for the better. It’s the elimination of the sleepless nights and worry about how and who is getting paid. Geraci Law is the firm to help you accomplish that goal. We’re here to help you figure it out.

It all starts with a phone call. Geraci Law attorneys are available by phone and offer same day meetings and case filings! You could improve your credit score, start saving money and put yourself in a better position in the future.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

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Organize Your Debt

Consult with a Law Firm

Meet with a Bankruptcy Lawyer for Free

Review and Sign your Bankruptcy Paperwork

File your Bankruptcy in Court

Attend your Meeting of the Creditors

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Small business bankruptcy or self-employed bankruptcy is usually a bad idea

By Peter Francis Geraci

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