Phoenix, AZ Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Lawyer

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Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Lawyer - Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Attorney

Many people think that you have to pay all your debts in bankruptcy. This is not true. Even in Chapter 13 Bankruptcy you do not have to repay your unsecured debts. You only have to repay what you can afford. This may not be any more than you would repay in a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.

A Phoenix bankruptcy lawyer can determine if you qualify for chapter 7 bankruptcy under the new bankruptcy laws. If you do not qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy under the new bankruptcy laws, you still have an option in the form of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Your bankruptcy attorney will help you get out of debt.

Under Chapter 13 bankruptcy you repay a portion of your debt based on a payment plan, that is calculated based on your income versus your expenses. After you pay your income and expenses each month, the trustee can take any left over money. However, most people will not pay back the full amount that they owe creditors. With a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, we can exercise a certain level of flexibility within the law to minimize the amount of money you have to pay to a trustee. The Chapter 13 repayment plan you have with your trustee will last for 36 - 60 months.

Your local bankruptcy attorney will sit down with you right in your neighborhood and discuss a possible Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Many clients utilize the FREE CONSULTATION to discuss chapter 13 bankruptcy.

About Chapter 13 Bankuptcy

Chapter 13 bankruptcy is sometimes referred to a reorganization bankruptcy and is very different from Chapter 7 bankruptcy. In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, most debts are discharged and a person is given a “clean slate” to start over. However, those persons that do not qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy may nonetheless seek financial relief through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy filing. In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, a person does not hand over any property, but must instead use their income to pay some or all of what is owed to creditors generally over a three to five year repayment plan.

The length of a person’s repayment obligation will be dependent on how much they earn in relation to how much they owe. If a person’s average monthly income over the preceding six month period prior to the date a Chapter 13 bankruptcy petition is filed is more than the median income for their state, they will be mandated to prepare and propose a five-year repayment plan. If however, a person’s income is lower than the median, they may propose a repayment plan over three years. (For median income data in your state, visit the United States Trustee's website, www.usdoj.gov/ust. No matter how much you earn, your plan will end if you repay all of your debts in full, even if you have not yet reached the three- or five-year mark.

Chapter 13 bankruptcy isn't for everyone. Because Chapter 13 requires you to use your income to repay some or all of your debt, you'll have to prove to the court that you can afford to meet your payment obligations. If your income is irregular or too low, the court might not allow you to file for Chapter 13. If your total debt burden is too high, you are also ineligible. Your secured debts cannot exceed $1,010,650 and your unsecured debts cannot be more than $336,900. A "secured debt" is one that gives a creditor the right to take a specific item of property (such as your house or car) if you don't pay the debt. An "unsecured debt" (such as a credit card) doesn't give the creditor this right.

The Chapter 13 Repayment Plan

The most important and convoluted aspect of a Chapter 13 filing will be a repayment plan. The repayment plan is a detailed list that will describe precisely how a person will repay each of their debts. There is no official form for the plan and therefore it is strongly recommended that you seek the advice of one of our bankruptcy attorneys when preparing your repayment plan documents.

A Chapter 13 plan is required to pay certain debts in full. These debts are called "priority debts," since they are considered adequately important to move to the head of the bankruptcy repayment line. Priority debts include child support, alimony, wages you owe to employees and certain tax obligations. In addition, your plan must include your regular payments on secured debts, such as a mortgage or an auto loan, as well as repayment of any arrearages (past due amount(s)) on the debts.

A repayment plan must also illustrate that any disposable income a person has left after making required payments will go towards repaying any unsecured debts, such as credit cards. It should be noted that a person will not be required to repay these debts in full or at all in some cases.

What Happens if I Cannot Repay the Repayment Plan?

If for some reason a person cannot finish a Chapter 13 repayment plan, if circumstances are warranted, the bankruptcy trustee has the power to modify the plan, or a court may discharge the remaining debts in full if “hardship” can be demonstrated. If the bankruptcy court won't let you modify your plan or give you a hardship discharge, you might be able to change to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy or seek permission from the court to dismiss your Chapter 13 bankruptcy, of which case a person would still owe any remaining debts, plus interest(s) creditors discharged while the Chapter 13 case was pending.

If you are ready to find out if you qualify for Chapter 13 relief, begin by filing out our bankruptcy case review form and an attorney from our office will follow up on your eligibility within 24 hours.