5 Tips on the Georgia 341 Meeting

What is the Georgia Meeting of Creditors like? A Meeting of Creditors is also called a 341 meeting, and  first we need to address what it means. At this meeting, your trustee will be going over your documentation for filing bankruptcy; it occurs in both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy, though the details can be different.

Chapter 7 bankruptcy can be more advantageous if you have a lot of debt. Creditors have the right to appeal your filing and can also question you at the 341 meeting. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is very different, as you create a debt repayment plan instead of discharging debt. At the 341 meeting, creditors can still question you and appeal, but they’ll be getting their money.

Now that we know how personal bankruptcy and the 341 meeting connect, it’s time to figure out how to act during the meeting. This post gives you 5 essential tips.

Stay Calm
Since you are not in a courtroom during a 341 meeting, you need not stress out about how it goes. In fact, most times creditors fail to even show up to these meetings. Often there is little they can actually do. It’s a brief, easy meeting but is also very important. There are rarely any problems created in a 341 meeting.

What to Bring, What to Wear
You usually only need to bring your photo ID and your bankruptcy lawyer handles the rest. As this is not a court room, you need no formal outfit; dress casually.

When to Be Honest
You should be honest always, but as we’ll go over, at times you simply will not want to answer. However, do not let that worry yourself, because questions directed at you are simple. You should always be honest about your financial outlook, your documents, and if you honestly made some mistakes.

When to Not Answer
There are very rare occasions where a filer is asked something they might not answer. Since this is not   a court room, but it is a meeting, you can choose not to answer certain questions. If you have to, for the record, plead the 5th  just like in court.

How to Finish Strong
The important thing to remember is this will be short, frank, and relatively easy. Your trustee will be overseeing the hearing, and he or she are actually quite important for your case. So finish strong, be honest, and follow any guidance your bankruptcy attorney gives you.

Filed under: Bankruptcy Information — Tags: , , , , , , , — jmalewitz @ 12:23 pm

How the Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Discharge Works

In Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you’re discharging debt. With Chapter 13, you’re reorganizing it. Some  get confused in how a Chapter 13 discharge works, so this post can help.

Are you ready for bankruptcy?
First you must be sure bankruptcy is right for you. In order for Georgia residents to be eligible for Chapter 7, you must be under the median income for Georgia. That’s the average rate Georgia residents earn. Look to this POST for more details.

Who do you call?
You need an experienced bankruptcy attorney. If you’re considering bankruptcy, and you feel you’re ready, it’s wise to get professional counsel from someone. A good attorney saves you time, money, and headaches. He or she can walk you through filing and prepare you for a fresh start. For Chapter 13 personal bankruptcy, you simply have to use the skills of professional counsel.

Discharging Debts with Chapter 7
Chapter 7 bankruptcy will discharge the majority of your debts, technically paying them off by liquidating your assets. However, most lose nothing by filing this, and it’s far more common in Georgia than Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Why? You can’t discharge debt with Chapter 13; you have to pay back the debt.

How Chapter 13 Discharge is Different
You still get a discharge with Chapter 13 bankruptcy, but you will be reorganizing the debts based on a debt repayment plan. You don’t lose any debt — you just make it so you can pay over the usual course of 3-5 years. Usually you’ll be paying your judge appointed trustee. A trustee is the person who will oversee your case and pay your debts .Unlike Chapter 7, the trustee will not liquidate your assets. Once you’ve completed the repayment plan, you are discharged from debts.

Benefits of Chapter 13
So you have to pay all these bills off? What’s the point? Quite true — you do have to pay them off — but there are many key benefits. If you face foreclosure and you really want to keep the home you’ve put time and money into, you can keep it as long as you stay current on the mortgage. Chapter 13 buys you time, and most use it to save homes and other property. If you have an income, it’s wise. If you have little or no income, like most others, you may prefer Chapter 7.

After Bankruptcy
Georgia residents are almost all eligible, most will lose nothing, and get to keep their home. However, this is a much longer process than Chapter 7. For one, a discharge from Chapter 7 can occur in months, while Chapter 13 is years. So it will take some time. But once you’re done, you’ll have saved all your assets, avoided being thrown out of your home, and can get a different kind of fresh start.

Filed under: Bankruptcy Information — Tags: , , , , , , , — jmalewitz @ 8:54 pm

Is Bankruptcy Still a Problem for Atlanta Residents?

Yes, bankruptcy is still a major problem for not only Atlanta residents but also the state of Georgia and nationwide. A recent study published that bankruptcy filings in March of 2010 were not only the largest of the year, but also the largest in some time. 150,000 bankruptcies were filed in March of 2010 nationwide.

Why the spike?
A study by the National Bankruptcy Research Center pointed out how bankruptcies did increase between February of 2009 and March of 2009, but not nearly the same level. Traditionally, bankruptcies have spiked in March, but the increase between months in 2010 was over 20 percent, while between the months in 2009 the spike was only 5 percent. So 15 percent more filed between those months this year. The spike then may not be just seasonal. However, with jobs being created more in 2010 than in past years, there may be answers.

Who is filing?
Middle class consumers who have homes, moderate paying jobs, and common medical bills are the main people filing for bankruptcy.

What is the main cause of filing?
There are many different ways to look at this. Historically, job loss and wage deduction was a major reason for filing bankruptcy. Since the mortgage crisis, filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy was much more common. However, other studies have highlighted how medical debt is forcing thousands to file bankruptcy. So it would be safe to say medical, foreclosure, and job loss are the prime culprits.

Where are the answers?
The best news we have, especially in Georgia, is that new jobs are being created nationwide. It may seem odd that jobs are growing as bankruptcies increase, but it may portend to an improving economy. Also, Chapter 7 is still the main form of filing. Abut 75 percent of filings are Chapter 7, while Chapter 13 is only about 25 percent.

When will this slow?
If job creation continues perhaps home owners will be safer. With medical reform on the horizon, medical debt may be a thing of the past for many. While the economy improves, bankruptcies will still be a fact of life but perhaps less so.

How should you file?
You need an experienced bankruptcy attorney to take your case. Because Atlanta specifically has been hit hard by bankruptcies, especially because of subprime mortgages, you need to know your options. If you hire an attorney, he or she can walk you through the process. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a solution for home owners as it can help you keep your home. Chapter 7 can eliminate the main reasons for filing: credit, medical, and mortgage debt.

Filed under: Bankruptcy Information — Tags: , , , , , , — jmalewitz @ 1:56 pm

Georgia Personal Bankruptcy and Debts Discharged

Filing bankruptcy in Georgia is a major problem for many. This is because of the many mortgages problems, high medical debts, and job losses. So what you can do to stay out of losing everything?

You can file either Georgia personal bankruptcy Chapter 7 or Chapter 13.

What debts can be eliminated?
You can discharge many debts, most importantly credit and medical debt. Here is the list.

-Business debts
-Leases
-Judgements against you
-Credit card debt
-Personal loans
-Negligence claims
-In most cases, mortgage debt

If you file Chapter 7 bankruptcy, the most common, you can discharge the above. It should be noted how Chapter 7 works. If you discharge mortgage debt, for example, you will lose the home. However, if you file for Chapter 13 you can get  an automatic stay and keep your home if you can pay on it.

What debts can’t be discharged?
For Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can’t discharge the following debts.

-Most taxes
-Child support
-Alimony
-Some student loans
-Luxury items purchased within 90 days of filings
-Fines owed to the government
-Recent cash advances

Why can’t you discharge these? It depends on the situation, but the bankruptcy laws are there to protect both the government and you, and work to stop any loopholes in the system. If you had thousands in tax debt, the government would not release you from them simply by filing. And if it were possible to give cash advances to others and discharge the debt, it would be a clear loophole.

What should Georgia residents file?
For personal bankruptcy, you have Chapter 7, where the debts are discharged, and Chapter 13, where you pay back debts over a 3-5 year plan. Chapter 7 is used by the majority of Georgia residents, but many see the advantage in Chapter 13. Chapter 13, to put it bluntly, can save your home from foreclosure; Chapter 7 can discharge the debt in some cases but you’ll lose the home if you can’t keep up on payments.

How much will it cost to file?
Hiring an attorney is going to cost some money, but you’d be surprised how little it costs and how much it saves you. And the actual filing fees are very small: $299 for Chapter 7, $274 for Chapter 13.

What if you make mistakes?
If you make mistakes in filing, that’s okay. Usually your attorney will catch them. If not, during the Georgia 341 meeting where a court appointed trustee will look over your case any problems should be found.

What will you lose?
You will most lose nothing with either Chapter 7 and Chapter 13. Georgia Chapter 7 filers typically get  a lot more than they lose, if they lose anything. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is actually designed so you can keep all your assets.

Filed under: Bankruptcy Information — Tags: , , , , , , , — jmalewitz @ 3:06 pm


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