A new bill in Congress seeks to overhaul the consumer credit-reporting system by lessening the period that loan defaults and bankruptcies are included in credit reports.
The Fair Credit Reporting Improvement Act of 2014, introduced Wednesday by Rep. Maxine Waters (D., Calif.) calls for large-scale revisions to the information in consumers’ credit reports, including the removal of certain foreclosures and short sales. A short sale is when a home is sold for less than the borrower owes on the mortgage and any other loans on the house.
The bill’s introduction comes a month after Fair Isaac Corp. announced it would tweak its widely used FICO ...
Read More...
FHA MORTGAGE AFTER BANKRUPTCY? THE ANSWER IS YES!
Over the past five years, many of my bankruptcy clients have surrendered underwater primary residences to their lenders instead of modifying their mortgages. In a majority of the cases, the numbers simply did not make any sense financially - even if they tried to keep the property, they would never be able to build any equity within a reasonable time frame.
The single most asked question in these cases has been "Will I ever be able to buy another home?" The answer is YES!
After the issuance of a discharge in Chapter 7 bankruptcy, an FHA applicant must wait out the FHA's minimum "seasoning" period. At the time of this writing, that period is ...
Read More...
FOUR TIPS ABOUT CREDIT AFTER BANKRUPTCY
No matter how many clients I have worked with over the past 25 years, the greatest concern of the vast majority of them is “How long will it take me to re-establish credit after I file Chapter 7 Bankruptcy?”
While there is no hard and fast rules of thumb, it is much easier than you think. Here are four tips to consider:
1. Keep any manageable debts you can after you file. In most cases, student loans can’t be discharged by bankruptcy. Other times, clients may choose to continue making payments on a car loan. Assuming that you can afford the monthly payments, it makes sense to maintain your student loan and/or auto payments after your ...
Read More...
SIX QUESTIONS TO DETERMINE IF FINANCIAL TROUBLE COULD BE BREWING
Whether you consider yourself to be financially responsible, or you always seem to come up short on cash, there are a few key indicators that may indicate you are living beyond your means—and being aware of them can save you loads of money woes in times of a cash emergency.
1. Do you have an emergency fund?
Need some motivation to start saving? Sit down and add up how much money you make each month. Then, multiply that amount by six. That is the amount that most financial advisers recommend as an emergency fund.
Most individuals underestimate life’s uncertainties and discount the need to have cash available for unexpected events like ...
Read More...
TAX RELIEF ON SHORT SALES ENDS – FILE BANKRUPTCY TO AVOID TAX CONSEQUENCES
In 2007, Congress enacted the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act in 2007 — legislation that exempted from personal income taxes the portion of mortgage-related debts that were forgiven by lenders in the aftermath of the financial crisis.
Under the Internal Revenue Code, when the repayment of some or all of a loan obligation is waived — such as in the case of a mortgage cancellation, short sale or some other type of modification that reduces the unpaid balance of a loan — the IRS views the forgone amount the same as if it were paid as ordinary income, and it is fully taxable to the recipient. Congress saw fit to shield borrowers against ...
Read More...
Seniors Struggling With Debt Likely To File For Bankruptcy
Older Americans are being squeezed in many ways. Healthcare and other basic expenses are rising. Fewer have pensions to supplement their Social Security income in retirement. Low interest rates mean what savings they do have isn’t growing quickly — unless they are willing to invest in higher-risk financial products.
And then there’s the other side of the equation: Credit and Debt. Many seniors have not properly planned for retirement financially. Many have used credit cards freely in the earlier stages of retirement to maintain their pre-retirement lifestyle without a plan on how to repay it.
Older Americans are increasingly struggling ...
Read More...
Mortgage Crises Far From Over – Time to Re-Address First Mortgage Modifications in Bankruptcy
Today’s New York Times Op-Ed Lead reminds us that the mortgage crises is far from over, but it still neglects to address what has always been the fairest and most viable option - permitting Federal Bankruptcy Judges to restructure first mortgages, including rate and principal reductions, in Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceedings.
Early in the financial crises, a few members of Congress were brave enough to draft bills to modify the bankruptcy laws to permit modifications. Their efforts were shot down by the bank lobby and quickly died - never to be brought back to life in any viable form. Now is the time to put this option back on the table on a ...
Read More...
Bankruptcy Filings Are Down – But That Doesn’t Mean People Do Not Need to File
Reuters reported today that the number of U.S. businesses and consumers filing for bankruptcy fell 14 percent in the first half of 2012 and could end the year at the lowest level since before the 2008 financial crisis, according to data released by Epiq Systems.
New bankruptcy filings fell to 632,130 in the first six months of the year compared to the same period last year, according to Epiq Systems Inc, which manages documents and claims for companies in bankruptcy.
The number of businesses filing for bankruptcy dropped 22 percent to 30,946 and the number of consumers seeking court protection from creditors fell 13 percent to 601,184.
"We ...
Read More...
Credit After Bankruptcy – Now Easier That Ever
It’s looking like 2005 all over again for credit cards....
The New York Times reported this week that credit card solicitations, particularly for those individuals who have tarnished credit or have previously filed bankruptcy, rose substantially during the fourth quarter of 2011. Credit card lenders gave out 1.1 million new cards to borrowers with damaged credit in December, up 12.3 percent from the same month a year earlier, according to Equifax’s credit trends report released in March. These borrowers accounted for 23 percent of new auto loans in the fourth quarter of 2011, up from 17 percent in the same period of 2009, Experian, a credit ...
Read More...
Housing Crisis and Student Loan Crisis Are Joined At the Hip
Over the past few weeks, I have read and noted a number of blogs and other commentaries from respected economists and authors touting the growing concern about the student loan crisis as the outstanding balances on student loans approach the $1 trillion mark.
Many pundits have commented about the value of college education relative to its potential return of investment. Some have noted the strain it has caused, both emotionally and financially, on students who have obtained degrees in the “liberal arts” and have been forced to accept positions outside of their field of study at salary levels which may not even cover the servicing costs of ...
Read More...
What Makes Me Different From the Others?