Sutter Creek, CA Bankruptcy Law Firms & Lawyers

You need to read the pamphlet I have written on Chapter 7 Bankruptcy: What you need to know. It can be downloaded at my website and is just too extensive to even summarize here.

What type of bankruptcy are you filing? In a chapter 7 BK there is no legal ways to compel creditor to restructure the loan. Some creditors may agree to different terms but it is a voluntary thing and you'd only find out after you file the case and contact them to see if they are willing to negotiate. Some lenders won't under any circumstances, some lenders may depending on your payment history with them and your financial situation. In a Chapter 7 the available options for vehicle loans are: surrender, reaffirm, redeem, and some lenders will still allow hold & maintain. Your BK attorney should go over these and explain each of them and how they work, perhaps a redemption loan can be obtained and is appropriate. This will depend on some more facts like: age of the vehicle, it's current market value, current principal balance, and interest rate on the loan. In a chapter 13, you can restructure the loan, not by reducing principal, but by stretching out payment and adjusting interest rate to current market rate. However, you have to weight having that as an option against the costs and the process of a chapter 13. This may prove not to be your best option. It depends on more facts not disclosed such as: your "current monthly income", household size, reasonable and necessary living expenses, types and values of your assets, types and balances of your debts. Any legal advice as far as what to do can only be made after an analysis of the debtors financial picture. Hope this perspective helps.

One myth about bankruptcy is that you can file a bankruptcy petition "on" a house, a business, a car, etc. When you file a bankruptcy petition, you include all aspects of your financial life. All of the assets and liabilities of the business that you ran would be included in the bankruptcy along with your all of your assets, including your home, personal property, cash, investments, etc., as well as all of your liabilities, including your personal credit cards, home, and automobile.