When Filing Bankruptcy Is the Best Option

About Me

When Filing Bankruptcy Is the Best Option

Thanks for stopping by my website. My name is John Finley, and I’m 46 years old. A few years ago, my wife and I found ourselves in a financial bind that continued to get worse. No matter how hard we tried to catch up, it seemed that our bills got larger, and we couldn’t keep up. Some of our credit card balances got so high that we couldn’t make the minimum payments. The collection phone calls came often and caused us a great deal of stress. We talked about different ways to get out of debt, but never found one that worked. We were both in agreement that filing bankruptcy was our last option. Well, the time came where we were out of other options and contacted a bankruptcy attorney. I am going to share our experiences with you and hope you find them to be helpful.

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How To Effectively Deal With Debt

Debt is something that most people in the United States are accustomed to. In fact, the average person has around $7,800 worth of debt with about a third of that being revolving debt which never gets paid off. Debt can be tough on anyone who fears there may be no way out of it. It can wreak havoc on your mentally and physically. When it comes to getting out of debt, there are some tips that can help. Getting out of debt can take time, but if you are determined to do it, you can overcome it. 

Call Your Creditors

One of the best things you can do to get out of debt is to work with your creditors. They have the power to remove fees, lower limits, and even lower your interest rate. Communicating with them can help you establish a good faith relationship with them. This can ultimately help you reduce the amount of debt you owe. For example, if you've been paying your credit card bill every month and you accidentally forget to pay it one month, you could have the late fee removed. By explaining what happened and showing them you have a great payment history, they could end up lifting the fee off your account. While not all creditors will do this, it cannot hurt to ask. 

Focus on One Account

The best way to handle your debt is in increments. Unless you received a substantial raise, you are not likely to be able to pay down all your debt quickly. One way to start paying it down is by taking your smallest debt and putting every extra penny you have towards it. Once you get this paid off, you can take the next smallest debt and work on that one. By focusing on one debt at a time, you are less likely to get overwhelmed. This is called the snowball method because you are essentially rolling the smallest minimum payment onto the next debt. 

File for Bankruptcy

If you find yourself under a large amount of debt and there is no way to get out of it, you may need to file for bankruptcy. This can be done by hiring a Chapter 7 bankruptcy attorney who can explain the process to you. While this will help you eliminate your debt, not everything is covered. You also want to you this method as a last resort since this could affect your credit score and borrowing in the future. 


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