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With all of my financial problems due to three miserable
real estate investments, I am facing foreclosure and seriously
considering bankruptcy. I started the foreclosure process last
year, and it is an ongoing ordeal. I have thought constantly
about filing for bankruptcy, but I have always wanted to avoid
bankruptcy at all costs. Now, however, with judgments being
placed against me, I am thinking that maybe bankruptcy might not
be so bad. Let's talk about how my life would change if I filed
bankruptcy.
First off, I will no
doubt lose several assets in a bankruptcy. I will lose my stock
investments that are not in my 401k or my IRA. That will cost me
about $35,000. I will also lose possibly all four of my real
estate properties. Of course, three of my real estate
investments are already going back in foreclosure anyway. All of
this is a great deal to lose, but I am really okay losing the
real estate. I have already accepted that whether I file
bankruptcy or not. Losing the $35,000 in stock hurts a little,
but I do not see anyway around this.
I do not think a
bankruptcy will cost me my job. That is great. I have a good
income, and I can live off of cash instead of credit until my
credit eventually rids itself of a bankruptcy listing. Of
course, I do worry that my corporate American Express card will
be cancelled. That would hurt as I travel a great deal with my
job, and the American Express card is basically essential. It is
odd though that my corporate card is not listed on my personal
credit reports so maybe a bankruptcy will not get my corporate
card cancelled. I will lose my personal American Express card
and other credit cards, but this is expected; and they are not
needed.
I do not think I will
have to move as I am renting a condo. Plus, I have a roommate so
I only have to pay about $700 a month in rent. That seems like a
reasonable amount for rent.
Since I am leasing my
car, I do not think that I will lose that. I do have my old car
- a 1996 Ford Taurus, very conservative. I will probably have to
sell that, but I should have done that already anyway. I may go
ahead and do this even if I do not file bankruptcy.
I worry about losing my
furniture and personal belongings. My lawyer says only $1,000 is
exempt for personal property. That means the court could come it
and take almost everything except my clothes. That would be
awful. I really would hate for this to happen. My lawyer does,
however, say that this is an unlikely event.
I also worry about being
forced into a Chapter 13 bankruptcy and having to make scheduled
payments for the duration of the bankruptcy for years on
property that I will not be able to keep. I do not think I will
even consider a Chapter 13 filing. My lawyer, however, tells me
that I will probably have to file a Chapter 13 due to my income.
I think if I have to go with a Chapter 13, I will just not file
bankruptcy. Chapter 7 would be a much more appealing option and
would make my decision a little bit easier. A friend of mine has
suggested I contact his lawyer. i think I will do that tomorrow,
at least for a second opinion even though this guy charges
double what my current lawyer charges.
What has gotten me
thinking more positively about bankruptcy is that I am starting
to see how long and ongoing the foreclosure process can be and
how relentless prosecuting attorneys can be. These two factors
have weakened my determination to avoid bankruptcy. Of course, I
did not discuss this with my lawyer yesterday. Yesterday, I was
still in the avoid-bankruptcy mentality. My, how quickly
attitudes can change in the face of worry.
What do you think? Would
I be better off just filing bankruptcy and be done with all of
this even though my credit will be shot for maybe ten (10)
years. My credit will be shot of ten years anyway because of the
foreclosures. What do you think about Chapter 7 versus
Chapter 13? I welcome any comments, good or bad; but please try
to keep them constructive. There is a link at the bottom of this
page for the comments page. Thanks.
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