Every day I am hearing more and more horror stories about the mortgage modification process. The most common gripes focus on the length of time that the process has been taking, and that after months and months of going back and forth with their lenders, more and more homeowners are ending up worse of than they were when they began the process. As an outside observer of the process, I am making the following comments as a word of caution to any homeowner who is either considering a mortgage modification or is already in the process: First, whether you like it or not, unless you were one of the relatively small population of homeowners with a ...
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Are you using a debt management firm to settle your debts? Have you recently completed a short sale? Have you had a property foreclosed and the bank received less than the outstanding balance on the mortgage? If you have answered Yes to any of these questions, you should be on the look out for a 1099C from your creditors. A 1099C forgiveness of debt is a statement that is issued to the IRS by a creditor in instances in which that creditor has not received payment in full of a debt. In essence, the foregiveness of debt can become ordinary income that you must declare in the year the debt was written off. A creditor is required by law to ...
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If you are considering filing for bankruptcy, this is not time to go it alone. Much of what goes into the filing of a bankruptcy petition comes from the insightful and probing questioning from a qualified bankruptcy attorney. Under New York State law, only a licensed attorney can provide legal advice. Paralegals and other bankruptcy petition preparers are strictly prohibited from practicing law, and therefore, can not give you legal advice or ask the necessary questions to make sure that you completing your paperwork fully and completely. There is nothing in the law that prohibits an individual from filing a bankruptcy petition without the ...
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This is a question commonly asked by many of my clients. Miami based immigration lawyer Michael Shane answers this question in a concise and well written article entitled "Effect of Bankruptcy on Naturalization Eligibility," which is published on the Lawyers.com web site. Mr. Shane notes specifically that there is no immigration law, statute, or regulation that specifically forbids individuals who have filed for bankruptcy from applying for Naturalization. Additionally, there is no specific question on Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, inquiring into bankruptcy. He also notes however, that your immigration status can be affected if ...
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Are you approaching retirement? Are you still burdened with massive minimum monthly payment obligations on your credit cards? Are you concerned that you will not be able to continue to maintain these payments once you stop working? U.S. News and World Report noted in a recent posting that an increasing number of Americans are entering their retirement years with debt. Some 63 percent of U.S. families headed by someone 55 or older still owed money on their home, credit cards, or other debts in 2007, up nearly 10 percentage points from 1992 Over the past 20 years, I have encountered countless individuals in mid-life who have agonized over the ...
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