Bankruptcy Attorneys In Maryland
Bankruptcy is becoming a more popular way for people to escape their debt. This is because of the economy being so bad in the United States. Many people that have debt are getting laid off and are not able to pay their bills and are forced to file bankruptcy. Within that past few years laws for filing bankruptcy have changed to make it harder for people to take advantage of the system. This made most people that actually need it think that they wouldn't be able to do it because they became stricter with these laws, but that is not true. If you cannot afford your bills for different reasons you will still be able to file just like you could before. These reasons range from many different things like divorce, death of spouse, disability, overwhelming medical bills, as well as other circumstances.
There are generally 2 different types of bankruptcy that the general population can file for. We will go over the two most popular ways that you can file in Maryland, as well as any other form of bankruptcy that you can file in Maryland. There are certain laws that you have to follow when filing for bankruptcy, many of these laws are federal laws and are the same no matter what state you live in, but there are some state laws that are in effect depending on what state you live in when you are filing for bankruptcy. Here are the different forms of bankruptcy that you are able to file for in the state of Maryland.
Chapter 7:
Chapter 7 bankruptcy is the same no matter what state you live in. Chapter 7 is the most popular form of bankruptcy and is the hardest to be able to file for. Chapter 7 is also called Liquidation, which means that when you file you will be appointed a trustee that will take all your eligible property and attempts to sell it to give the money to the debtors that you owe. Almost all cases of Chapter 7 bankruptcy is what is called No-Asset cases, that means that the person that is filing for bankruptcy doesn't have anything of value that the trustee would be able to sell.
If you do have assets that the trustee can sell there are some things that you can keep. These things are listed here.
- Home furnishing, clothing, appliances, pets, and household goods up to $1,000.
- Grave stones, and burial plots
- Health Aids
- Things like tools, clothing, and other things that are considered part of a trade or profession, up to $5,000
- 75% of what is called disposable wages
- Cash, or property up to $6,500
These are just a few of the things that you are able to keep, if you want to see the whole list you can find it on the Internet.
Another thing that most states make you do before you can file for chapter 7 bankruptcy is that you have to go to a certified Credit Counselor. After doing this you can proceed with your bankruptcy plan.
Chapter 13 is the other form of bankruptcy that a majority of the people file for. This form of bankruptcy is explained right here.
Chapter 13:
Chapter 13 if a form of bankruptcy that people can file for that allows them to keep everything they own. This is done by reorganizing your bills, and allowing you to keep paying them over a five year period. This is for people that have steady jobs, but something happened to make them behind and they do not want to lose everything they have by foreclosure, or repossession.
To be able to file for chapter 13 you have to have a steady income, as well as a disposable income. Disposable income is money you have left over after you pay your main bills like housing, food, and utilities. To be able to file for chapter 13 you can not have more then $1,010,650 in secured debt, and $336,900 in unsecured debt. Most chapter 13 filings allow you to pay off your debts within a five year time period.
There are some expenses that you cannot get rid of by filing for bankruptcy and these are the same no matter what state you live in. Here is a list of the things that bankruptcy will not take care of.
- Alimony
- Child Support
- Fines from government agencies
- Debts received from fraud
- Back Taxes
- Most student loans
- Purchases of $500 or more made within 90 days of filing
- Cash advances of $825 or more made within 70 days of filing
One of the things that most people have to realize is that they should not wait. If you feel that you cannot get ahead with your bills, and that you feel you will never catch up you need to look into filing for bankruptcy. You need to take care of it before you get to the point where you are about to lose everything, the sooner that you looking into bankruptcy the better chance that you will be able to keep what you have and not lose it. If you are interested and want to find a bankruptcy attorney in your area you can click here.