There is Life after bankruptcy and it includes a new car!

 According to the Federal Judicial Caseload Statistics, there are literally millions of people filing bankruptcy each year. The statistics reveal that Chapter 7 is by far the most frequently filed Chapter, with 958,634 non-business consumer filings for the period ending December 31, 2011. The reason for this is that a Chapter 7 bankruptcy releases individual debtors from personal liability for most debts and prevents the creditors owed those debts from taking any collection actions against the debtor. 11 U.S.C  727

 to read more about life after bankruptcy go to:

http://www.thenichereport.com/articles/there-is-life-after-bankruptcy/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Bank of America to reduce principal amounts, true or false or how does it affect you?

Bank of America announced yesterday that throughout the summer they will send out approximately 200,000 letters, letting their customers know that it will be possible to reduce their principal amount on the "underwater mortgages" by, as much as, $150,000.00.  Is the statement above true?  Yes, in fact, it is.  However, the real question should be, how does it apply to you and here is your answer. Although, the Bank of America it attempting to comply with the recent settlement agreement, which they have reached with the US Government, there are still loopholes.  Not everyone will qualify for this great deal.  If you are lucky enough to receive a letter from Bank of America this summer, and you have to receive a letter to apply, you will then have to contact Bank of America to see if you qualify.  In order to qualify, you must be underwater, which means your mortgage must be more then what your house is currently worth, you must have stopped paying your mortgage payments by January of 2012 and you must show that you cannot afford to make your current mortgage payments. You will also have to show that if the monthly mortgage payment is reduced, you will be able to afford to pay the reduced amount.  Sounds too good to be true????  Maybe it is.

Loan Modifications might work afterall ....

(Reuters) – The Treasury Department said on Friday that the number of active permanent mortgage loan modifications agreed to by banks rose 13,836 during February to 782,609 by the end of the month.

The modifications, which aim to lower monthly payments so that distressed homeowners can avoid foreclosure, were made under the Home Affordable Mortgage Program, or HARP.

It offers incentives to mortgage servicers to rework loans and is one of multiple programs the Obama administration has initiated to try to take some of the pressure of the hard-hit housing sector that continues to be a drag on recovery.

Originally, HAMP was targeted to help 3 million to 4 million homeowners but it has reached only a fraction of that number. It has been widely criticized by Republican lawmakers for not being effective but the administration said earlier this year that it was being extended for one year through 2013.

It's time to open your junk mail!!!

Federal Government will be reviewing foreclosures initiated by several banks, including Chase, Citi Bank, Wells Fargo, HSBC and a few others, from January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2010. Between 11/01/2011 and 12/31/2011, homeowners, whose homes were in a foreclosure process during 2009 and 2010, will receive letter and forms from the Federal Government. If you would like the Federal Government to review your loan you will have to fill out the required paperwork and mail it in by April of 2012. Even if you house was sold or auctioned off, or your loan settled, you will still qualify for this program!
Check out:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-regulators-offer-foreclosure-reviews-to-borrowers-20111101,0,5471035.story

More on student loans, can I repay them?

Is it really college education really worth it? This is the question being asked by many high school graduates, along with, how will I be able to repay the student loan?
The new Obama initiative, might make it a little easier to make up your mind:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/college/story/2011-10-26/college-student-loan-relief/50942832/1?csp=34money&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+UsatodaycomMoney-TopStories+%28Money+-+Top+Stories%29

Are student loans dischargeable in bankruptcy?

This year along, the debt on the student loans has gone out of control. With unemployment on the rise, what are the chances that these kids will repay these student loans in the next 10 years?????
Read this article
http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/college/story/2011-10-19/student-loan-debt/50818676/1?csp=34money&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+UsatodaycomMoney-TopStories+%28Money+-+Top+Stories%29

So, to answer the question of whether or not the student loans are dischargeable, I will simply say "They are not." Although, that is not completely accurate, it answers correctly the 99% of the questions. However, there is that 1% percent of cases, where student loans might become dischargeable and believe me, you do not want to be in that 1%. To discharge student loans in bankruptcy, one has to show that he or she is suffering such great financial hardship, which will not change at any foreseen time.

So much for loan modification help, most of the money goes unspent.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/story/2011-10-06/foreclosure-aid-program/50680758/1?csp=34money&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+UsatodaycomMoney-TopStories+%28Money+-+Top+Stories%29

President Obama stated on Tuesday that "No one has an inherit right to make a profit." What happened to capitalism?

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/obama-banks-dont-have-inherent-right-certain-amount-profit

Home foreclosed, but the Debt remains. Can the bank take more than your home?

http://www.jdsupra.com/post/documentViewer.aspx?fid=7f8a1591-8dc0-419a-897d-282df870281e

Reflection of our economy: the Diaper sales are down, really?

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203791904576609254230522240.html?mod=e2tw

Bank of America to shut down its lending division

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/10/04/financial/f122046D07.DTL&feed=rss.news&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-why-so-few-homeowners-have-been-helped-by-the-home-affordable-refinance-program-2011-10?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

US sues most major banks over bad mortgages

US or Federal Housing Finance Agency, sued major banks, including Bank of America, Citigroup Inc, etc. over packing bad mortgages into securities and selling them to the US government. This comes after US gave a huge bail out, only several years ago, to those same Banks, to get them out of the trouble of bad mortgages. Seems ironic, isn't? Now, that the Bank industry is suffering, as one of the worst industries in the world, the US government decides to get their money back. What will the Bank's do????
Read more at http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-report-us-to-sue-12-large-banks-over-mortgage-portfolios-20110901,0,5699337.story

US Foreclosure rate drops, Illinois foreclosures still in the top 10

US foreclosure filings dropped 35 percent last month, lowest in almost four years. But this does not mean that the real estate market has recovered. The foreclosure decline began when the attorney general started investigating a practice called " robo-signing, " in which bank's employees signed affidavits without any knowledge of the cases at hand. Therefore, bank put the foreclosures on hold, attempting to come up with new affidavits. However, as soon as these affidavits are available, it is possible that the foreclosure rates will go back up.

Countrywide refunds money

If you are one of the lucky few who had a mortgage with Countrywide Home Loans, Inc between January 1, 2005 and July 1, 2008, you will be happy to know that pursuant to a recent FTC settlement, you will be a receiving a check in the mail. Countrywide is mailing 450,177 refund checks worth almost $108 million dollars to homeowners who were allegedly overcharged certain illegal fees.

Avoiding Foreclosure

If you, among many others, failed to make monthly mortgage payments and are now facing a possibility of being kicked out of your home, there are still many things you can do to keep your house. LOAN MODIFICATION: although a very difficult and time consumming process, filing for a loan modification can definetely improve your chances for staying in your home. if you are approved for a loan modification, the bank will dismiss the foreclosure proceedure against you in Court and give you a second chance at making it work. BANKRUPTCY: Chapter 13 can help you keep your home, even after a judgment of foreclosure has been entered against you in court. Chapter 13 is a difficult legal process and should be done with an assistance of a knowledgeable bankruptcy attorney. SHORT SALE: will not help you keep your home, but will steer you away from foreclosure. I am short on time, but will attempt to describe each one in detail soon. Good luck

Bankruptcy, Meeting of Creditors

To all those debtors out there, would you like to know what to say and what not to say at your Section 341 meeting of creditors???? If you are like most of my clients, you are somewhat nervous about what will happen at your meeting of creditors and would like to know exactly what you will be asked and what you should be answering. One word of advise, TELL THE TRUTH ABOUT EVERYTHING. You have no idea what lying can do, no idea. My mother always told me that lies always result in more lies and we all know that mothers are almost always right. I was witnessing a debtor trying to get out of lying to the trustee today and it was not a pretty picture. So, tell the truth and keep it short.

THE NEWS ON FORECLOSURE

A client the other day told me that she had heard on the news that banks will no longer pursue foreclosures. She also wanted to know what did that mean in her case, would she continue to live in her house without paying the mortgage and would the bank take her house? To be honest, I cannot, myself, comprehend the completely foreclosure crises to its fullest, but I will try to explain the most recent news on the foreclosure to the best of my legal ability. In some states, including Illinois, it has come to the attention of the judges, attorneys, and banks, that during the foreclosure process, which begins with the homeowners failing to pay their monthly mortgage payments, some banks failed to comply with all of the required steps of the foreclosure laws, while others simply forged documents. Among these banks are Chase, Bank of America, and several, unnamed others. Due to this latest development, the Banks decided to put some of their foreclosure cases on hold. Now, this is the punch line, we have no idea which cases. So, I guess for most homeowners in trouble, this is simply a waiting game of seeing whether or not their case will be the one to be put on hold.

Lost your job, you might get a break on your mortgage payments

Bank of America recently announced that they have come up with a new program, to help unemployed home owners. The program has not been approved as of yet, but might be approved some time soon. If you are unemployed and are collecting unemployment, Bank of American will allow you, with their permission, of course, to stop paying your mortgage for 9 months. What will happen after 9 months is obviously up to you, but the 9 months can help home owners find a new job, put some money aside, or simply sell their existing home.

Behind on your mortgage?

You are not alone. 7.2 million loans are reported delinquent as of last year, 2009. If you are one of many who would like to save their home, consider working with banks for a loan modification solution. If that does not work, Chapter 13 bankruptcy can help you save your home and reinstate your loan.