When you have debts that you want to resolve legally, you may need some advice about how to proceed with filing a bankruptcy case. You may not want to liquidate all of them. In fact, you may prefer to organize them in a lump sum that you can pay off progressively over a number of years.

With that, you may want to retain legal counsel to explain how to navigate this legal process. You can benefit from hiring an experienced Chapter 13 bankruptcy law attorney to advise you.

Identifying Eligible Debts

When you want to take out this chapter of bankruptcy, you need to find out what types of debt are eligible for it. You may want to know if you can include debts like student loans, owed taxes, and child support obligations. You also want to know if you can include owed credit card bills, medical expenses, and defaulted rent obligations.

The attorney that practices in Chapter 13 bankruptcy law can advise you on what debts you can include and what ones are not eligible for this type of filing. You can then decide what ones to incorporate in your filing or even if this form of bankruptcy is the right one for your debt consolidation needs.

Payment Amounts

You also may want to know how much your payments will be each month. You want to avoid taking on a payment amount that is too expensive and not something you can afford to pay for years at a time. You also want to know you will have enough money left over out of your paycheck each month on which to live.

An attorney who works in Chapter 13 bankruptcy law can advise you on what percentage of your paycheck might be claimed for your payment to the court trustee each month. He or she can also advise you on whether or not you can reasonably afford this amount or if it will be better for you to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

Advice about New Debts

Finally, your Chapter 13 bankruptcy law attorney can advise you on whether or not you can take on new debts while you are in an open bankruptcy. You can determine if you can wait until the case is closed before you can take on a new car loan, rental contract, or other forms of new debt.

A Chapter 13 bankruptcy law attorney can advise you on whether or not to file this case. He or she can identify eligible debts, estimate payment amounts and advise you on taking on new debts during your open case.

For more information on Chapter 13 bankruptcy law, contact a professional near you.

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