I live in Missouri and have done some investigating. The two lawyers I spoke with told me it would cost me $1250. The lawyer fee is $900, and the filing fee is $350. They said I could make payments if I needed to, but they would not file for me until it is paid in full.
As Patty Lynn stated in a previous posting, a good place to check is bankruptcyaction.com. It answered all of my questions. Thank you Patty Lynn!
Yes there is a fee that has to be paid to the courthouse when you file. I filed a few years ago and the exact amount has probably changed. That fee can NOT be waived; but, they did give me the option of making payments to the courthouse for a few weeks.
Do some checking around. You can file for bankruptcy on your own; but, it is a complicated process. There are "do it yourself kits", services, and lawyers who can assist you depending on the level of assistance you need.
I hired a service that helped me assemble all the required information, helped prepare the necessary forms and reviewed them for correctness; and, then I had to do the rest and actually file myself. It all went smoothly.
Only you can decide what you can afford and how much help you need for your circumstances. Best of luck.
Bankruptcy laws change month to month, year to year and state to state so it might behoove you to scrounge up the money for a bankruptcy lawyer. It would be a shame for you to try and do on your own only to find out there was a change/loophole you didn't know about and you end up getting turned down by the bankruptcy judge and 'can not' file again! :-o
Call a few local bankruptcy lawyers, make appointments (consultation is free) and choose a lawyer based not only on their rate but by your gut feeling about them! If they say they charge by the hour run, don't walk, far away from them! There are lots of good bankruptcy lawyers that charge a standard flat fee based on your needs! Be aware that those fees will need to be paid up front but they include all of his fees and filing fees!
Back in 1996 the bankruptcy laws changed a great deal. You have to take credit counseling classes before and after. You can do all the paperwork yourself. Go to the government website through the court links. They tell you how to file without an attorney. The mandatory classes can be taken online. I believe the classes are 50-100 and the bankrucptcy is about 250. It may have changed since we had to file in Sept 2006. Keep your spirits up, you can recover from financial difficulties, we finally have, three years later. You could check out the non-profit credit counseling to see if they can get debt write off - just be careful with that as the cancellation of debt ends up as income and you end up owing a lot of income taxes.
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Request: Filing for Bankruptcy (07/24/2009)
I had to file chapter 7 bankruptcy 3 years ago due to becoming disabled. Now when I try to get a debit card from any bank I am turned down.
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Request: Filing for Bankruptcy
Archived on 07/24/2009
I had to file chapter 7 bankruptcy 3 year ago due to becoming disabled. Now when I try to get a debit card from any bank I am turned down. The Chex system has me owing one bank 300 dollars even though it was included in the filing. I know life isn't fair, but bankruptcy is supposed to give a person a fresh start, this just does not seem legal to me. Any help would be appreciated.
Jeff from Anderson, IN
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RE: I Need Bankruptcy Advice
Jeff, I'm sorry you're having a tough time. Bankruptcy does give you a fresh start as far as the debt. The bank you used to owe $300 to is barred from trying to collect that money, but Chex Systems is still allowed to keep a record of it just like your credit report will show all those charged-off debts for 7 years.
It does seem silly to deny you a debit card that would deduct money from your checking account. But the reason for this is simple: You left one bank with a negative balance in your account, and so your current bank doesn't want to take any chances on that happening again. A couple of things you might try are opening an account with a credit union (they tend to be very oriented toward helping their members as opposed to just making a profit) or a bank that's based in your area (if you can find one), where you can speak to someone with real authority to make decisions on an individual basis.
All the best, good luck getting your finances in order. (04/18/2008)
There is a web site by Scott Bilker (just type in the name; his site should come up) that offers all sorts of financial advice. You can also ask him specific questions. I've found it wonderfully informative. Good luck. (04/19/2008)
By Janet45101
RE: I Need Bankruptcy Advice
You can get a debit card at Walmart. It is loadable, for a fee, but it works just like one from the bank. This may be something you might want to look into. (04/20/2008)
