The North Carolina Bankruptcy Information Blog

You hear tons of experts advising you to pay off high interest debt before any other expenses. And in some cases this makes perfect sense. For example, it’s always a smart move to deal with credit cards with double-digit interest rates before handling the plastic with single-digit interest. But in other cases, you may want to pay off debts with lower interest rates in the interest of appeasing creditors who have more recourse against you when or if you get behind on your payments.

According to NerdWallet financial expert, Tim Chen, “When you have several different types of debts and your income isn’t quite keeping up with your total expenses, it can be tough to figure which debts to pay first.…

It’s tax season. Which means that for most people, it’s time to realize just how much we give to Uncle Sam every year. For some, the prospect of a refund provides a glimmer of hope that some new money is coming in soon to pay off debts.

Just a quick little note on your tax dollars before we get into the meat of this post: it is actually better to owe just a little bit of money after filing because that means that you have used more of our your own money throughout the year instead of giving it all to the government.…

The New York Times recently published a story relating to one aspect of the foreclosure crisis that many a troubled homeowner will know all too well. When you’re struggling to hold on to your home, the main reason is obvious: for one reason or another, you cannot afford the big mortgage payments rolling in every month.  But the troubles don’t stop there: increasingly, homeowners are finding themselves squeezed to the breaking point by property taxes they can’t afford.  Unfortunately for many homeowners, the pictures gets even grimmer. The good news: they won’t be dealing with government tax collectors. The (really) bad news: they will be dealing with private bill collectors instead.…

Bankruptcy is a terrific way to take care of many kinds of debts. But you may have heard that not all debts will be discharged in a bankruptcy. As a result, and depending on the kind of debt you have, you may be worried that declaring bankruptcy would not really help you. What you may not know is how bankruptcy can help you with your debts, even the ones you can’t discharge outright.

Support obligations fall in this category of debt.  They include things like alimony and child support payments. Because these are priority debts, you will not be able to discharge them outright with a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, and, in addition, the automatic stay will not prevent collection efforts on past due support obligation payments.…

When you have been dealing with huge bills and no way to pay them for a long time, filing for bankruptcy protection can come as an enormous relief, putting an end to the uncertainty of a precarious financial life. For one thing, your paychecks will finally stretch to cover your expenses. In a Chapter 13, your secured debt will be restructured, allowing you to catch up any missed mortgage or car payments. In very rare circumstances, unsecured creditors may also be entitled to receive payment through your Chapter 13 plan. This typically happens when you have too much income, or excess equity in property above state exemption allowances.…