Three Things You Need to Know About Bankruptcy

There is so much misinformation out there about bankruptcy, from what it means, to how it will affect you, to when and how often you can file. Here are three things you need to know about bankruptcy if you are filing, planning to file, or researching your options for debt elimination.

1. Bankruptcy is better for your credit score than staying in debt. The purpose of bankruptcy is to give you a fresh start. Staying in debt, struggling, and having assets that you need to survive, such as your home or your car, taken away one by one until you can no longer make a living is the exact situation bankruptcy was designed to protect against. Struggling on your own for years can be far worse on your credit than bankruptcy and leave you with much less in the end.

2. You can file for bankruptcy more than once in your lifetime. Bankruptcy protection is available more than just once. For Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can only receive a discharge of debt once every eight years. For Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you can receive a discharge of debt every two to four years depending on the circumstances. 

3. You won’t lose everything in bankruptcy. Bankruptcy won’t leave you without any assets—under the law, there are assets considered essential to everyday life that state and federal exemptions will allow you to keep. Each of these exemptions have monetary limits that you must stay under. In some states like Washington, you can choose from federal or state exemptions to get the most value from whatever assets you are trying to keep.

To find out your options, you can meet with a bankruptcy lawyer for free. Obviously, that is a great deal for you. You can meet with an experienced bankruptcy attorney for free and find out how you can take control of your financial situation. All it normally takes is about 30 to 45 minutes of your time.

Over the past 32 years, the Law Offices of Christopher A. Benson has helped over 2,300 of Washington clients take control of their financial situation. We can stop your garnishment and change your monthly payments for all your combined unsecured debt, and if you have had more than $600 garnished within the last 90 days, we can get all of the money back in most cases. But you have to act quickly–call (253) 815-6940 for your free consultation, or email us today. Evening and weekend appointments available.