Grampy used to tell me when I was a kid, that if I ate my Lima Beans (Gross!) they would give me a hairy chest! So I believed him! After all, I looked up to my Grampy; he was the smartest, most brilliant man I knew. AND he could even bend a spoon just by looking at it! However, as time goes by, you learn that if you rely on unchecked “truths” you can really get burned in life.
Many of my Orlando bankruptcy clients share a common question, borne out of a pervading myth, when they come in for their free evaluation with me at our first meeting. That is “Do I Have Enough Debt to Qualify for Bankruptcy?”
California bankruptcy lawyer, Douglas Jacobs, discusses in a recent blog, the question of “Do I Qualify to File for Bankruptcy?” A simple “Yes” is his answer. Most people will be able file for some kind of bankruptcy, in my opinion. Only an experienced bankruptcy lawyer, after reviewing your entire financial situation, can answer the more appropriate inquiry of “Should I file for bankruptcy?”
A Chapter 13 bankruptcy puts limitations on the amount of money a person can owe and still file for that type of bankruptcy, but in Chapter 7 bankruptcy there are no limitations on debt you can owe when filing this type of bankruptcy. Therefore, how much or how little you may be in debt to your creditors does not come in to question when considering whether you qualify to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
As an Orlando bankruptcy lawyer, I know first hand that the Chapter 13 Trustee in Orlando looks very closely at whether Debtors exceed the debt limitations of Chapter 13 and will file a Motion to Dismiss the case if the debt limits are exceeded. Specifically, if you owe more than $360,475 in unsecured debt (think credit cards, medical bills, signature loans) or more than $1,081,400 in secured debt (think home loans and car loans), you could face a motion to dismiss in Orlando.
As an Orlando bankruptcy lawyer, I believe the myth about having to have a certain amount of debt to file for bankruptcy is one of the most common bankruptcy myths out there. It is amazing how many myths there are when it comes to filing for bankruptcy, and since most of them have no factual basis, it is hard to say where they came from.
Now that you know that you probably do qualify to file for some type of bankruptcy, I encourage you to meet with an experienced bankruptcy lawyer to discuss your options. Hopefully, when you meet with that lawyer, this, and some other myths you may have heard about filing for bankruptcy will be dispelled.
If you are considering filing for bankruptcy, make sure you hire an experienced bankruptcy lawyer to work for you. Do you have more questions about filing for bankruptcy before you take the plunge? Check out K. Hunter Goff’s FREE eCourse.