As an attorney who has had his finger on the pulse of the taxi industry since the crisis began in early 2016, I am compelled to comment when I think that an injustice is occurring
Although, on the surface, the NYC restructuring program with Marblegate/Depalma/Fieldpoint that formally rolled out on September 19, 2022 looks promising on the surface, an issue that had held the rollout back until now has not been adequately addressed - namely the tax consequence of the loan reduction.
Since this issue has not been adequately resolved, it has been buried in a general disclosure and disclaimer that most taxi owners may be missing since their ...
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Student Loan Relief Belongs in Bankruptcy Court
Let's stop the nonsense about absolute student loan forgiveness.
I think we can all agree that if a student who never got a degree after incurring student loan debt, and is in a low paying job, that student should be afforded some relief as long as they can prove that they do not have the ability to pay the debt. As noted in last week's WSJ, this would level the playing field between the haves and have nots. The place to do this is in Bankruptcy Court. The mechanisms are already in place and have worked fairly well for the LAST 15 YEARS. Between exemptions that are allowed with respect to property that can be protected and the means test ...
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Fed Chairman Questions Discharge of Student Loans in Bankruptcy
Market Watch reported today that the new chairman of the Federal Reserve questioned why struggling borrowers can’t discharge their student loans in bankruptcy.
“Alone among all kinds of debt, we don’t allow student loan debt to be discharged in bankruptcy,” Jerome Powell told members of the Senate Banking Committee Thursday. “I’d be at a loss to explain why that should be the case.”
Powell’s comments came in response to a question from Senator Brian Schatz, a Democrat from Hawaii, about whether high levels of student debt create a drag on the economy. More than 40 million Americans hold nearly $1.4 trillion in outstanding student ...
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Education Department Reviewing Discharge of Student Loans in Bankruptcy? – Not So Fast
After a 20 year hiatus, Student loan borrowers may finally have their day in Bankruptcy Court.
The Education Department said this week it will review when borrowers can discharge student loans - an indication it could become easier to expunge those loans in Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
The Department said it is seeking public comment on how to evaluate undue hardship claims asserted by student loan borrowers to determine whether there is any need to modify how those claims in bankruptcy are evaluated.
As of now, it is almost impossible to discharge student loans in bankruptcy. The rule of thumb in New York has always been the ...
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Does Declaring Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Actually Help You?
Rich Feinsilver is an experienced bankruptcy lawyer who will take the time to discuss with you your decision to file, since this is not something that one should make 'on the fly'. If you so choose to file personal bankruptcy, the law allows you to choose between Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
While both scenarios have their pros and cons, this post is focused on highlighting the reasons that make Chapter 7 a better option for declaring bankruptcy, as noted by an experienced bankruptcy attorney.
The Legal Fees and the Process
Typically, a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case takes around five to six months at max to be resolved. On the ...
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Student Loans Guidance From D.O.E. – Is The D.O.E. Making Deals? Maybe
The Department of Education has recently released a guidance letter on how it will handle bankruptcy discharge requests for government backed student loan debt. Although any guidance is helpful, it's more or less another “kick the can down the road” as it places the burden on students who believed what schools and colleges sold them as a smart financial move.
The Department of Education desires to find a balance between collecting debts and allowing debt to be discharged. What this formula misses is the inequity of the indebtedness to begin with by schools, for-profit and nonprofit, pushing loans on consumers. It's almost like a game of ...
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Bill Proposes To Shorten Reporting Periods For Derogatory Credit
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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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