Bankruptcy Law Blog

Sacramento homeowners have been noticing that home prices are rising. For some, this means that they are emerging from being “underwater” and slowly gaining equity in their homes. Despite this trend, there are still many folks that owe more than their house is worth. And still many folks who are falling behind on their mortgage…

People love their credit cards. Lots of folks rely on credit cards for every day expenses. Others simply use them for the airline miles or Disney Dollars. Although many people learned many financial lessons during the last recession, new statistics released by financial site CardHub show that Americans incurred over $57 billion in new credit…

Student loans are ubiquitous these days. Students all over Sacramento, from Sac State to American River College, often graduate and find themselves unequipped to handle the debt burden imposed by student loans. It is a fairly common understanding that bankruptcy isn’t much help when it comes to student loans. But earlier this month, the United…

Folks all over the Sacramento region, from Woodland to El Dorado Hills, have fallen into unfortunate situations with debt. Bankruptcy is often the answer to fixing those problems and getting a financial fresh start. But the things that happen during the bankruptcy and afterwards are just a small part of the story of a successful…

There are many misconceptions about bankruptcy. One of the most common is that filing for bankruptcy is a permanent and devastating hit to a consumer’s credit. That is simply not true. At first, it can be a little difficult to get credit. A recently discharged consumer will likely have to pay higher interest rates and…

Living and working in the Sacramento area makes it very difficult for regular folks to get by without a car. Oftentimes, a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing helps debtors in the area get rid of credit card debt and personal loans to relieve some of the pressure. But if the debtor needs to keep the car…

A major factor to consider when filing bankruptcy is timing. Even after a Sacramento-area consumer has decided that she will definitely file bankruptcy, in many cases the timing can be crucial. Often, a debtor has little choice but to file as soon as possible. Swift action may be necessary to ward off a repossession, eviction,…

One of the most common reasons people file bankruptcy is to get a fresh start on their finances. The problem is that there are some very serious consumer reporting failures in recent years that prevent debtors from gaining the full benefits of a discharge. Creditors often fail to report an updated status for discharged accounts…

A credit report can determine whether or not you can find a job, rent an apartment or buy a car or home. But the average consumer has very little knowledge about how the data is collected, who is receiving it, and what errors it contains. It is frightening how much a secret system can affect…

When people in the Sacramento area file bankruptcy, often one of their chief concerns is whether they will be able to protect the equity in their homes. The primary tool for protecting that equity is called the “Homestead Exemption.” There are federal exemptions and many states offer different maximum exemptions for folks’ primary residence. Since…