Honesty When Filing Bankruptcy Goes a Long Way A Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Take?

When someone is at the end of their financial rope filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy can be their best option. As a matter of fact, most people who file for bankruptcy file Chapter 7 Bankruptcy because it is fairly quick and easy, does not require that the debtor make payments back to their creditors over a period of time, and eliminates most if not all unsecured debt.
A good place to begin is a trip to a local bankruptcy attorney for a consultation. Most bankruptcy attorneys offer free consultations to potential clients so that the individual can, with the expertise of the bankruptcy attorney, determine if filing bankruptcy is right for their financial situation, what chapter to file, the time frame and cost involved, and the general process of filing for bankruptcy. It is imperative that the debtor feel comfortable with the attorney since they will be working together closely throughout the process and the debtor will be required to provide the attorney with a lot of personal financial information. For instance, the debtor will need to review their income, total assets, and debts with their attorney prior to actually filing the bankruptcy petition with the court. The attorney will use the full extent of the law to protect as much property as possible for the debtor through the use of bankruptcy exemption laws. If the debtor does have any property that is not exempt, it may be sold by the trustee to disperse the proceeds to the creditors. A word of caution, a debtor that attempts to purposely not claim assets, hide the sale of property prior to filing bankruptcy, or transfer assets or property to another person or family member can face serious trouble from the bankruptcy court if this is discovered. Fines and or jail time can and will be brought upon the debtor for such actions. This is why it is extremely important to divulge everything to the bankruptcy attorney in the beginning. They are on your side and will work in the best interests of their client as long as the client is honest and upfront with everything. If there are any issues that the bankruptcy attorney thinks may be a problem it can be discussed ahead of time with the debtor and a new strategy may be worked out to avoid any surprises.
The thing to keep in mind is that bankruptcy was designed to give good hard working people a fresh financial start, not penalize them for hitting a rough patch in the road. When someone is filing bankruptcy it is very important to be completely honest with their bankruptcy attorney and the court to be able to take advantage of the new beginning that bankruptcy offers. In this tough economy that we are all in filing bankruptcy is no longer frowned on like it once was in years past. Filing bankruptcy is not for just individuals but many businesses are taking advantage of all that bankruptcy has to offer. When it comes to bankruptcy, a little honesty goes a long way on the road to recovery.

The low level of time and effort necessary to discharge most of your debt through Chapter 7 bankruptcy (with an attorney) is another great benefit to the bankruptcy system. Note, this article discusses Chapter 7 bankruptcy timeframe, and not Chapter 11, 13, or any other bankruptcy filing.
A Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a complete discharge of a unsecured debt. In order to qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, your income from the last six months must be at or below the median income for a household of your size. The exact numerical value differs depending on the number of dependents you have, and median income in the area where you live.
For the client, the full process usually takes no more than an afternoon and a couple hours for a discharge meeting at the courthouse.
First, the client usually needs to have a meeting with an attorney. These meetings are typically scheduled for an hour, and depending on the depth of the conversation and how talkative the attorney and client is, the meeting can last as little as 15 to 30 minutes.
Second, the client needs to fill out an information packet that is very robust but can be done in a few hours in an evening. Running through bills and reviewing paperwork to find every debt you have can be tedious and the time it takes can differ depending on how organized you are and how many debts you have. For debts missing, a few calls and most creditors have no problem sending you your information.
Next, you need to attend two online debtors courses, each taking about 45 minutes apiece. These can be done at home or your local library.
Finally, the only steps left for those with attorneys is to review their documents before filing (10 to 20 minutes), read a two page information sheet (5 minutes), and to attend their 341 meeting - a court appearance where you answer a few yes/no questions on the record and the trustee declares your debts discharged. Absent a challenge from a creditor, that's it. The meeting can be very quick or can take a while to get through depending on the last name of your attorney. Clients are called based on the alphabetical order of the attorneys. Depending on how talkative the trustee is, each client really only takes about 5 minutes at the most. For those trustees who talk more, and like to hear the stories of talkative clients, it might take a bit longer.
So that's it. For those who choose to not use an attorney, it can take weeks and months to learn the necessary paperwork, the correct exemptions, how to do a "means test"; and since most non-attorneys mess up quit a bit, it will take several attempts in order to get a filing through - and that's if you don't mess up and get our case dismissed.