Get Out Of Debt

Bankruptcy, although necessary for many individuals, should be utilized as a last resort once all other options have been reviewed first. One of the first things that a person can do is review their own spending patterns or habits before seeking help. If acted upon before the problem reaches the point of no return it is conceivable that there may be no need for outside intervention.

There are several resources available online that are designed to help an individual create a household budget without any cost. Also most credit counseling agencies should be able to provide you with a household budget at no cost. There are also bankruptcy attorneys that will assist in this as well, however it is paramount that these services remain free of cost. Be leery of Credit Counselors or Bankruptcy Attorneys that charge upfront for assisting in the creation of a household budget, as it seems to me that if someone is willing to charge you in order to help you get out of debt on your own then it might be that there intentions go beyond wanting to help you and fall more in line with wanting to help themselves. Now don’t get me wrong, if there is a continual service that they provide then by all means there should be some fee charged.

So before attempting a “Do it yourself bankruptcy” you may want to seek advice from an actual Bankruptcy Attorney or a certified Credit Counseling Agency first. Just be sure that the initial advice is provided at no cost. Also if continual assistance is needed remember to shop around, fees for practically the same services can vary widely from one organization to another. Also make sure the organization that you choose to work with has the support services available to make your experience with them the best it can be.

Written by Rick Munster

All Portland Oregon Bankruptcy Attorneys have seen an increase in new bankruptcy clients and filings this year.

The number of bankruptcy cases filed in year 2009 in the United States increased by over 35% over the preceding year of 2008. The Administrative Office of the U.S. courts released a report that over 1,300,000 bankruptcy filings have been filed in the fiscal year ending in June 2009. According to same office, the previous year saw less than 1,000,00 filings.

The overwhelming majority of bankruptcy filings are consumer cases. The talley of consumer fillings, 1,250,000 in all were filed in 2009. That was a 34% increase since 2008.

Chapter 11 saw the sharpest rise in filings in 2009. These bankruptcy filings rose 91% in 2009.

Unfortunately the upward trend of new filings shows no sign of slowing down.

Consider for attorney, who makes you relaxed and is understanding about your problem. Try to found out if the attorney is organized, prompt and work well together. Last but not the least, you should also make sure that matters about fees and payment are settled will offer free consultations, give you experienced service, and ask you to fill out evaluation form etc.

As long as President Obama is in office and continues to attack businesses with threats of new taxes, business owners will continue to lay off workers in an attempt to stay in business. This new administration is partially to blame for the countries mistrust of our economy as President Obama continues to lie about the economic situation the U.S. is in.

Debt piled on debt… Once upon a time claiming bankruptcy was like a “get out of debt free” card. Those days are long gone, and getting a bankruptcy discharged is much harder now. But if you really want to complicate an already complicated process then try to include an IRS tax debt into your bankruptcy.

You can’t get off the hook that easy… Although an IRS debt can be included in a bankruptcy, it is very difficult. There are a number of factors that contribute to a tax debt not being able to be included. On top of that bankruptcy attorneys are not very experienced at tax law, and can easily make a mistake that won’t allow your tax debt to be considered.

Pulling back the curtain… I want to help you understand what requirements there are, and give you an alternative to dealing with your tax debt outside of bankruptcy.

So how do you get an IRS debt included in a bankruptcy, and what are some of the problems with including an IRS debt in a bankruptcy?

You can not include any years that you owe tax debt which are more recent than 3 years ago. That means if you’re filing bankruptcy in 2008, the latest year that you could claim back tax debt from would be 2005.

Even though the IRS can’t pursue any collection actions against you during the period you’re in bankruptcy the interest and penalties continue to add onto to the debt during the time it takes for the bankruptcy to be processed. And if your bankruptcy is dismissed, you’ll owe all that money to the IRS.

The time spent in bankruptcy extends the Statute of Limitations on the debt. Normally the IRS only has 10 years to collect a debt from you. But the length of time you were in bankruptcy extends that time period.

There is an alternative… What else can you do with an IRS debt if you can’t get it discharged in a bankruptcy? Since you’re filing bankruptcy you’re in a pretty desperate financial situation. This can make you a prime candidate to settle your tax debt with the IRS outside of bankruptcy.

It’s not all bad news… You may qualify for an Offer in Compromise depending on how damaged your financial situation is. With an Offer in Compromise you can negotiate with the IRS to get your debt settled for a single lesser payment. An Offer can take as long as a bankruptcy to be approved and it does have a much lower chance of succeeding; in fact only 2% of Offers are accepted. To learn more about the specifics and requirements for an Offer in Compromise read my article “Settling Your IRS Tax Debt for Pennies on the Dollar”. Also talk to your bankruptcy attorney.

Now you have the smoking gun…Use it!