With the rise in personal bankruptcies, many “experts” are urging debtors to not consider bankruptcy too soon. Although I agree that declaring bankruptcy “too soon” may be a problem for a tiny minority of debtors, it is far from an epidemic for the majority. It is rare that debtors file bankruptcy after only one missed credit card payment or three days after losing their job. Most debtors seriously considering bankruptcy are only considering it after a host of financial boulders have come smashing down on them. Many debtors declare bankruptcy as a last resort, AFTER they are faced with imminent foreclosure , after their wages have been garnished, and after they have already exhausted their savings and retirement accounts putting their very financial future at risk. The problem is rarely ever that a debtor is rushing into a bankruptcy decision, it’s actually the opposite.
We need to encourage debtors to keep bankruptcy as an option when they are facing financially trying times. We need to tell them to take an honest look at their financial health, considering all of their debts and expenses, plus their assets. If a debtor finds that they are unable to pay their bills even if they have a job, they probably need to declare bankruptcy. If a debtor has been unemployed for a year or more and is facing foreclosure and/or creditor lawsuits, they may need to declare bankruptcy. Bankruptcy is a process that many debtors, especially in this current economic environment NEED to go through. When a debtor considers bankruptcy he/she is required to go through credit counseling to find out if there is any other way to pay his/her debts. The credit counseling process will give the debtor an opportunity to receive an unbiased opinion about their financial condition. The bankruptcy process is efficient enough to prevent debtors from filing “too soon” so it is quite baffling that certain “experts” have taken up the call to prevent premature bankruptcy filings, which in fact rarely (if ever) occur.
To discuss your bankruptcy options, please contact a Dallas- Fort Worth bankruptcy attorney .