Philadelphia Bankruptcy Attorney

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The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act (BAPCPA) requires an attorney to certify the accuracy of a debtor’s liabilities and assets in a bankruptcy case.

The Dunne Law Offices, P.C. utilizes CoreLogic, a leading provider of information, analytics and business services to satisfy the due diligence requirement of (BAPCPA).

CoreLogic recently launched a credit reporting solution tailored specifically for U.S. consumer bankruptcy attorneys called the “View Report”.

The View Report combines 3 national credit bureaus designed to satisfy specific data verification needs for bankruptcy attorneys and includes a predictive post-bankruptcy credit score

Analysis. With access to one of the nation’s largest consumer and business databases, CoreLogic leads the bankruptcy compliance industry and guarantees that a debtor’s liabilities will be erased

in a bankruptcy case.

Stephen M. Dunne, Esq.
Dunne Law Offices, P.C.

1500 John F. Kennedy Boulevard
Two Penn Center, Suite 200
Philadelphia, PA 19102


(215) 854 – 6342 office
(215) 205 – 6367 cell
(215) 525 – 9721 fax


Follow us on the web:

Web:       http://www.thephiladelphiabankruptcyattorney.com

Linked In:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/stephendunne

Blog:        http://dunnelawoffices.wordpress.com/

 

 

Chapter 7 bankruptcy may be harder to file under the new law.

The changes to bankruptcy law in 2005 may be making it harder for some people to file bankruptcy. A few filers with higher incomes will no longer allowed to use Chapter 7 bankruptcy, but will instead have to repay

at least some of their debt under Chapter 13. In addition, the 2005 law requires all debtors to get credit counseling before they can file a bankruptcy case — and additional counseling on budgeting and debt management before their debts

can be wiped out. Here are some of the most important changes in the 2005 bankruptcy law.

 

Restricted Eligibility for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.

Under the old rules, most filers could choose the type of bankruptcy that seemed best for them — and most chose Chapter 7 bankruptcy (liquidation) over Chapter 13 bankruptcy (repayment). The law passed in 2005 prohibits some

filers with higher incomes from using Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

 

How High is Your Income?

Under the rules enacted in 2005, the first step in figuring out whether you can file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy is to measure your “current monthly income” against the median income for a household of your size in your state.

If your income is less than or equal to the median, you can file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. If it is more than the median, however, you must pass “the means test” — another requirement of the new law — in order to file for Chapter 7.

 

The Means Test

The purpose of the means test is to figure out whether you have enough disposable income, after subtracting certain allowed expenses and required debt payments, to make payments on a Chapter 13 plan. To find out whether you pass the

means test, you subtract certain allowed expenses and debt payments from your current monthly income. If the income that’s left over after these calculations is below a certain amount, you can file for Chapter 7.

 

Counseling Requirements

Before you can file for bankruptcy under either Chapter 7 or Chapter 13, you must complete credit counseling with an agency approved by the United States Trustee’s office. (To find an approved agency in your area, go to the Trustee’s

website, www.usdoj.gov/ust, and click “Credit Counseling and Debtor Education”.) The purpose of this counseling is to give you an idea of whether you really need to file for bankruptcy or whether an informal repayment plan would get you

back on your economic feet.Counseling is required even if it’s obvious that a repayment plan isn’t feasible or you are facing debts that you find unfair and don’t want to pay. You are required only to participate, not to go along with any repayment plan the

agency proposes. However, if the agency does come up with a repayment plan, you will have to submit it to the court, along with a certificate showing that you completed the counseling, before you can file for bankruptcy.

Toward the end of your bankruptcy case, you’ll have to attend another counseling session, this time to learn personal financial management. Only after you submit proof to the court that you fulfilled this requirement can you get a bankruptcy

discharge wiping out your debts. (The website above also lists approved debt counselors.)

 

Lawyers May Be Harder to Find — and More Expensive

The changes to bankruptcy law enacted in 2005 added some complicated requirements to the field of bankruptcy. This made it more expensive — and time-consuming — for lawyers to represent clients in bankruptcy cases, which means

attorney fees have gone up. The 2005 law also imposed some additional requirements on lawyers, chief among them that the lawyer must personally vouch for the accuracy of all of the information their clients provide them. This means attorneys

have to spend more time on bankruptcy cases, and they charge their clients accordingly.

 

Some Chapter 13 Filers Will Have to Live on Less

Under the old rules, people who filed under Chapter 13 bankruptcy had to devote all of their disposable income — what they had left after paying their actual living expenses — to their bankruptcy repayment plan. The 2005 law added

a wrinkle to this equation: Although Chapter 13 filers still have to hand over all of their disposable income, they have to calculate their disposable income using allowed expense amounts dictated by the IRS — not their actual expenses —

if their income is higher than the median income in their state. These allowed expense amounts must be subtracted not from the filer’s actual earnings each month, but from the filer’s average income during the six months before filing.

 

 

Stephen M. Dunne, Esq.

Dunne Law Offices, P.C.


1500 John F. Kennedy Boulevard

Two Penn Center, Suite 200

Philadelphia, PA 19102


 

(215) 854 – 6342 office

(215) 205 – 6367 cell

(215) 525 – 9721 fax


 

Follow us on the web:

Web: http://www.thephiladelphiabankruptcyattorney.com

Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/stephendunne

Blog: http://dunnelawoffices.wordpress.com/

 

Congress authorized $1 billion last July to help unemployed homeowners nationwide who are at risk of foreclosure as part of the Emergency Homeowners Loan Program (EHLP). EHLP was signed into law 180 days ago by President Obama as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

On October 5^th, 2010 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued a press release stating that: “It is HUD’s intention for the program to begin taking applications from eligible homeowners by the end of the year.”

To date, the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) which will administer the HUD loans is still waiting for the money from Washington.

HUD spokesman Brian Sullivan recently stated that “the target is the first quarter of this year.”

The EHLP law will provide up to $50,000 in zero-interest loans for each homeowner who qualifies, or who is behind on their mortgage payments due to unemployment, underemployment or medical bills.

Homeowners in Pennsylvania need this money today as there are 13,000 new foreclosure notices sent out every month to residents of the keystone state.

The situation in Philadelphia is even more dire but fortunately Judge Pamela D. Dembe, the president judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia has issued a 30 day moratorium for the nearly 1,500 residential properties in foreclosure.

The time for HUD to act is now. Pennsylvania families threatened with eviction in the winter of 2011 need help today.

To speak directly, one on one, with an experienced and knowledgeable Philadelphia Bankruptcy Lawyer, please contact the Dunne Law Offices at (215) 854-6342. We offer a free initial consultation for all consumer bankruptcy matters.

The Dunne Law Offices, P.C. is a debt relief agency. The Dunne Law Offices, P.C. helps people file for bankruptcy relief under the bankruptcy code.