Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Lawyer in Bucks County

Take Control of Your Finances Through Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

Chapter 13 bankruptcy can help you solve financial problems by making one affordable monthly payment for all of your debt. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a good option for those with a steady income who can’t qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

Chapter 13 helps reduce debt payments and lets people keep their assets, giving them control over their finances again. If you are overwhelmed by debt and need financial help, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy may be right for you.

If your home mortgage lender is threatening or has initiated a home foreclosure action, the Law Office of Michael Schwartz can discuss the best way to handle your situation. If you want to keep your home, filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy can help.

Filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy can help you keep your home. It stops foreclosure and allows the mortgage company to create a payment plan for missed payments. Additionally, it enables you to start making regular monthly payments again.

Filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy can reduce your monthly payments for credit cards, loans, and medical bills. It can also assist with mortgage arrears. By lowering the payments on unsecured debt, you can better afford to pay your mortgage obligations.

Michael Schwartz is a Chapter 13 bankruptcy lawyer in Bucks County. He also has offices in Delaware County, PA.

Using Chapter 13 Bankruptcy to Resolve Tax Liabilities and Credit Card Debt 

Filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy helps with paying off debts like mortgages and car loans. It also helps in resolving tax and credit card debts through a reorganization plan. Depending upon several factors, such as the age of the tax years due, amounts owed to the IRS or PA Department of Revenue, your assets, family size, and disposable income, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy may be able to affordably resolve tax liability.

Another benefit to Chapter 13 is that the penalties and interest on the taxes will stop once your case is filed. A Chapter 13 plan enables you to pay off your payments much more efficiently and rapidly. If the court agrees, your new payment plan will make it easier for you to pay off your debts. It will also give you an opportunity to recover financially.

You will be required to begin making payments to cure arrears on your loans, taxes and other debts to the Chapter 13 bankruptcy trustee 30 days after the bankruptcy filing and every month thereafter during the repayment plan. After filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you need to resume making your regular monthly mortgage payments. Payments on your mortgage resume with the next payment that is due after the bankruptcy is filed.

The Benefits of Filing Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

In addition to home foreclosure protection and the establishment of a workable payment plan that saves people money, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy may also be able to stop:

• Harassment by creditors – once the Chapter 13 bankruptcy is filed, creditors must stop collection practices including phone calls, letters and lawsuits
• Wage garnishments – if wages are being garnished by a creditor, the filing of a Chapter 13 will stop the garnishment
• Frozen bank accounts – once Chapter 13 bankruptcy is filed, the Law Office of Michael Schwartz will take action to release a levy on a bank account
• Car repossessions – a Chapter 13 bankruptcy will prevent the car from being repossessed and force the car lender into a payment plan to cure any arrears. Action can even be taken to have the car returned after it is repossessed, so long as the bankruptcy case is filed before the car is sold at auction
• Sheriff sales and mortgage foreclosure – a Chapter 13 bankruptcy is typically an ideal way to stop a foreclosure and sheriff sale of your home. In many cases, the Chapter 13 will create a plan for payments to the mortgage company to cure the existing arrears
• Tax sales – if real estate tax is left unpaid, the tax claim bureau will schedule a tax sale of the home. Chapter 13 bankruptcy will stop the tax sale and allow for a payment plan to get back on track with the real estate taxes
• IRS debts – the Law Office of Michael Schwartz can create a plan to resolve IRS debt through Chapter 13 bankruptcy. In many cases, Chapter 13 bankruptcy will reduce the liability owed to the IRS and prevent future interest and penalties from accruing

The Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Process 

Your lawyer will create a document called a petition that contains your assets, debts, income, expenses, and creditors for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. This petition will also contain your Chapter 13 Plan. This plan is a proposal on how your debt will be resolved through the bankruptcy. The plan will show you your monthly payment, the length of payments, and how a trustee will disburse the payments to creditors to resolve the debt.

After you file the case, the court will appoint a Trustee to oversee it. You will make monthly payments to this Trustee beginning 30 days after filing the case. In turn, the Trustee will disburse the funds in accordance with the Chapter 13 plan.

All creditors listed in the Chapter 13 petition are sent claim forms. For the creditor to get paid, they will need to file claims, letting the Court know exactly how much money is owed. In order for the case to be approved, the creditor must file claims that are consistent with the Chapter 13 plan.

The Trustee will schedule a 341 Meeting of Creditors. The Trustee will review your petition and plan with you and your lawyer during the meeting. They want to ensure that the payment suggested in the Chapter 13 plan is suitable for your specific situation.

If your plan follows the bankruptcy rules and pays creditors the necessary amounts, the Trustee will suggest confirming your case. If the case is confirmed, your payment is set for the remainder of the payment plan. Upon completion of your payments, the Judge will issue a Chapter 13 bankruptcy discharge.

Contact Bucks County bankruptcy lawyer Michael Schwartz to schedule a free consultation to discuss your Chapter 13 bankruptcy options in one of his Bucks County offices. Michael Schwartz is a bankruptcy lawyer with offices in Southampton, Havertown and Perkasie PA.

He serves all of Bucks County and Delaware County. Contact him at (215) 392-8783. Make Michael Schwartz your bankruptcy lawyer of choice!