Fredericksburg Bankruptcy Attorney
Get a Bankruptcy Lawyer Near Me
When considering whether to file for bankruptcy in Fredericksburg. It is a good idea to look for a qualified bankruptcy lawyer who specializes in either chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy law. With so many choices when searching for a “Fredericksburg Bankruptcy Attorney” it can become confusing and overwhelming. Especially when facing mounting financial pressures from your creditors.
Thankfully at Fisher-Sandler, LLC we have you covered. You see, both Nathan Fisher and Michael Sandler have filed thousands of successful bankruptcy petitions since 1999 for Northern Virginia and Fredericksburg area residents. We specialize in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, Chapter 11 Bankruptcy for individuals and Chapter 13 Bankruptcy along with providing Uncontested Divorce services, loan modifications for both home mortgages and student loans.
We both know what it’s like to have constant creditor harassment. Facing wage garnishments, home foreclosure, eviction, utility bill cut-offs, bank levy’s, IRS Tax Levy, creditor lawsuits, etc.. At times the stress can become overwhelming. Stop living in fear and get the fresh start you deserve. Call us today at (540) 274-5566 to schedule your FREE consultation.
Bankruptcy Services in Fredericksburg VA
At Fisher-Sandler, LLC – Fredericksburg, VA we specialize in everything related to bankruptcy filing in Virginia. Whether we need to file a chapter 7 bankruptcy, chapter 11 bankruptcy or chapter 13 reorganization on your behalf we can get it done for you right the first time.
For many people struggling with debt or facing mortgage foreclosure, bankruptcy provides immediate and long-term solutions for which they are looking. If you think personal bankruptcy may be right for you, an experienced lawyer can help you answer your questions in order for you to make the right decision. At Fisher-Sandler, LLC we help people throughout Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County get the bankruptcy legal counsel they deserve..
Fredericksburg Bankruptcy Services:
– Foreclosure Defense
– Student Loan Modification
– Property Exemptions
– Tax Forgiveness
– Auto Repossessions
– Stop Creditor Harassment
Bankruptcy Process
The steps to obtain bankruptcy will depend on the circumstances of your case and whether you file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. To learn about the process you can expect from each type of bankruptcy, keep reading.
Fredericksburg Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Attorney
Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code provides for “liquidation” or discharge of certain debts to give an honest individual debtor a “fresh start.” The individual debtor has no liability for discharged debts.
By far the most common type of bankruptcy case filed, a Chapter 7 case can eliminate virtually all of your debts. If your case is handled by an expert Fredericksburg bankruptcy attorney, it is likely to be a fast and easy process. But without expert advice and help, Chapter 7 cases can quickly go off track and lead to many problems, delays and even lost property or the failure to get the relief you seek. Our attorneys have filed and handled literally thousands of bankruptcy cases and we are experts at guiding people through the process and getting you the relief you deserve.
What Is Chapter 7 Bankruptcy?
Sometimes called a “fresh start” bankruptcy, a “clean slate” bankruptcy or a “liquidation,” Chapter 7 bankruptcy is the best way to take control of your financial situation and start over by eliminating your debts. In Chapter 7 you will wipe out your credit card debts, medical bills, payday loans, lawsuits, judgments, unpaid balances on repossessions or foreclosures, personal loans, guarantees and more. Your Chapter 7 case will be finished in just 3 to 4 months. A Bankruptcy Trustee reviews your paperwork at a “meeting of creditors” or” 341 meeting” that you attend with your Fredericksburg bankruptcy lawyer. Most people complete their cases quickly and the get to keep all of their property.
Steps To Filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
Step 1 – Collect Documents – Gather your financial documents so that you and your attorney can review your debts and your overall financial health and discuss whether a bankruptcy filing is appropriate. This is the first step in the process. You’ll need to pull together your monthly household bills, information about your income, your credit card bills, student loans, and your investments such as stocks and bonds. Once these are examined by your Fredericksburg bankruptcy attorney he/she will see if you qualify for Chapter 7 via the “means test“.
Step 2- Evaluate Options – Your attorney will evaluate what type of bankruptcy is appropriate. There are two sections of the federal bankruptcy code, Chapter 7 and Chapter 13, that are used for filing personal bankruptcy depending on the individual circumstances. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy, sometimes referred to as straight bankruptcy, involves the sale of non-protected assets to pay off as much debt as possible and allows a debtor to have most debts dismissed such as credit card debt and medical bills. It is available for individuals who do not have regular income to pay their obligations. Your attorney will determine whether you pass the Chapter 7 means test and are eligible for Chapter 7. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy requires the debtor to submit a proposed repayment plan for court approval to pay debts owed to creditors within three to five years. To qualify, you must have enough monthly income to keep up with the repayment schedule and also cover household expenses. Chapter 13 is the most common type of bankruptcy protection sought in Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County. A trustee will oversee the disbursement of payments to creditors and issue a discharge of debt if you complete the repayment plan.
Step 3 – Get Credit Counseling – All individuals who are planning to file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 personal bankruptcy are required to complete a pre-bankruptcy credit counseling class within six months before filing for bankruptcy. The agency may prepare a debt repayment plan. Once you complete the class, the agency will issue you a certificate of completion, which must be filed with the bankruptcy court. The credit counselor is not allowed to advise you whether you should file for bankruptcy. The bankruptcy administrator keeps a list of approved organizations that offer credit counseling.
Step 4 – File Bankruptcy Petition – Your Fredericksburg bankruptcy attorney will file a bankruptcy petition with accompanying forms listing your income and expenses. When you have completed filing the petition and claiming your exempt property, an automatic stay goes into effect and prevents creditors and collection agencies from pursuing debt collection efforts against you, including foreclosure proceedings, eviction, repossession of vehicles and garnishment of wages. The stay will remain in effect while the bankruptcy is pending.
Step 5 – Appointment of Trustee – The federal bankruptcy court will appoint a trustee to handle the administrative tasks related to your case. The trustee reviews the bankruptcy petition manages the bankruptcy estate and oversees the sale of any assets to pay creditors. If the bankruptcy filing involves a repayment plan, the trustee will oversee the plan as well. The bankruptcy trustee also monitors your obligation to file a tax return and yearly financial statements.
Step 6 – Attend Creditors Meeting – The trustee also organizes the creditors’ meeting. You will receive notification from the trustee of the time and place of the meeting, also known as a 341 meeting. The individual filing for bankruptcy is required to attend the meeting to provide the trustee and creditors an opportunity to question the individual seeking bankruptcy protection about his or her financial situation and information in the petition.
Step 7 – Discharging the Bankruptcy – If you have a Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Fredericksburg, the trustee will decide whether you have property that is worth seizing to sell and pay creditors. If you have a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you will send the trustee all of your disposable monthly income left after paying your household expenses. The trustee will receive monthly payments from you and distribute them to the creditors, according to the repayment plan. You must complete all the payments in order to receive a discharge at the end of the bankruptcy.
Step 8 – Attend Debtor Education Class – Before you receive a discharge from the bankruptcy court, you are required to complete a required personal financial management counseling class. Whereas the prior credit counseling class focused on your existing debts, the debtor education class, as it’s commonly known, is designed to teach you how to budget and manage your finances going forward. When you complete the class, you’ll receive a certificate of debtor education. In Chapter 7, you are required to complete the class within 60 days of the date set for the meeting of creditors. In Chapter 13, you must complete the class before filing a motion requesting a discharge of debts.
Fredericksburg Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Attorney
Chapter 13 bankruptcy is best suited for individuals who have a steady income and property that they may want to hang on to. A qualified Fredericksburg Chapter 13 bankruptcy attorney can best examine the details around your case and provide you with proper, legal guidance. Under a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you will be able to keep your property but will have to prepare a payment plan to repay all or some of your debts within a three (3) to five (5) year period. Essentially, you will be reorganizing your debt into debts that will be paid and debts that will be discharged. In exchange for paying some of your debts, there are some important benefits the Bankruptcy Code provides to you, which can make this type of bankruptcy a useful option. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy may sometimes allow you to reduce what you pay for your car (including your interest rates), reduce some of your tax liabilities (including tax penalties), and remove a second mortgage from your residence.
In order to qualify for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you must prove that you can meet the financial obligations of making payments on your debt. Chapter 13 provides you some control in the payment plan and provides a second chance for keeping your home, paying off your taxes, and keeping your car. A lot of the time you will be able to walk away from most if not all of your unsecured debts, such as credit cards, and be able to create a payment plan with your Virginia bankruptcy attorney based on what you can afford.
What Is Chapter 13 Bankruptcy?
If filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy in Fredericksburg Virginia. Chapter 13, Adjustment of Debts of an Individual With Regular Income, also known as the Wage Earner Plan, is designed for an individual debtor who has a regular source of income, that enables the debtor to keep a valuable asset, such as a house that may be in foreclosure or that may have excess equity, and allows the debtor to propose a “plan” to repay creditors over time – usually three to five years. Chapter 13 is also used by consumer debtors who do not qualify for chapter 7 relief under the means test due to excessive income.
Benefits of Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
Chapter 13 does not require you to give up any of your secured property and allows you to catch up on delinquent house and car payments through the plan. Chapter 13 is most beneficial for clients who are facing a foreclosure or repossessions. You will be able to keep your home, car, furniture, jewelry, and other valuables unless you choose to liquidate them yourself to repay your debts. Chapter 13 does take longer than Chapter 7, but it allows you to remain in control and continue making payments, which can have less of an impact on your credit score. Once your repayment period is up, all remaining debts will be discharged and you will be able to focus on credit restoration.
Filing the petition under chapter 13 “automatically stays” (stops) most collection actions against the debtor or the debtor’s property. Chapter 13 also contains a special “automatic stay” provision that protects co-debtors. Unless the bankruptcy court authorizes otherwise, a creditor may not seek to collect a “consumer debt” from any individual who is liable along with the debtor. Consumer debts are those incurred by an individual primarily for a personal, family, or household purpose.
Fredericksburg Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Attorney
Chapter 11 bankruptcy is not just for businesses. There are many individuals with enough personal assets to require a plan that can handle their unique concerns. If you think Chapter 7 bankruptcy or Chapter 13 bankruptcy might not be able to meet your needs, talk to an experienced Fredericksburg bankruptcy lawyer about Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
At Fisher-Sandler, LLC we specialize in filing Chapter 11 Bankruptcy for individuals. There are many factors that go into determining if chapter 11 will be your best option. Please give our Fredericksburg bankruptcy attorney office a call today (540) 274-5566 for your FREE consultation.
What Is Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in Fredericksburg?
Chapter 11 bankruptcy is not just for businesses. There are many individuals with enough personal assets to require a plan that can handle their unique concerns.
The usual goal of Chapter 11 bankruptcy is to put together a debt reorganization and repayment plan for businesses and individuals with both significant debt and significant assets. It provides protection from adverse creditor actions such as repossessions and lawsuits and gives you the opportunity to turn your financial situation around.
While Chapter 11 bankruptcy is designed for businesses, it is an option for some individuals as well. If you have high-end real property, such as a multimillion-dollar home, that you want to protect during the bankruptcy process, Chapter 11 might provide you more protection than Chapter 13 and may be your only option to protect it. Most individuals who file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy have multiple properties, including rental properties, they want to protect.
Fredericksburg Emergency Bankruptcy Attorney
Fisher-Sandler, LLC – Fredericksburg, VA has been helping Spotsylvania County residents file for emergency bankruptcy petitions since 1999. We can file your bankruptcy case within a 1/2 hour of meeting with you. This can stop wage garnishment, home foreclosure, creditor lawsuits, eviction, utility bill cut-offs, frozen bank accounts, etc. immediately. Once your case is filed the “automatic stay” goes into immediate effect. Which stops ALL creditor action against you immediately.
What Is Emergency Bankruptcy FIling?
Emergency bankruptcy filings are sometimes necessary. Bankruptcy is a big decision that should be carefully considered. However, sometimes it is the best move for your financial situation, and sometimes you need bankruptcy protection immediately! Circumstances that call for an emergency bankruptcy filing may arise, and our Fredericksburg bankruptcy attorneys can help. If you are facing a foreclosure or wage garnishment, bankruptcy may provide you with the protection from creditors as the Automatic Stay comes into play immediately and all collection action and lawsuits must cease.
Our Fredericksburg Emergency Bankruptcy Lawyers in Virginia can assist you if an emergency situation should arise. Many times emergency situations happen with little or no warning. When these unfortunate events happen in a person’s life, there is peace of mind knowing that our team of debt relief experts at Fisher-Sandler, LLC are there to assist you every step of the way Call (540) 274-5566 today for your FREE consultation.
We can get the process started quickly by filing electronically. In most cases, you are protected by the automatic stay the moment you file, and the threat of lawsuits, wage garnishments, and utility shutoffs stops immediately. Creditors can no longer call you at home or at work and you can refer all creditors to us. The Law Offices of Fisher-Sandler, LLC will do all the work necessary to get you started on the road to becoming debt-free.
Fisher-Sandler, LLC – Fredericksburg, VA
1930 William Street
Fredericksburg, VA 22401
(540) 274-5566
7GW5+33 Fredericksburg, Virginia
38.2952, -77.49231
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Fredericksburg Virginia – About
Fredericksburg is a city on the Rappahannock River in Virginia, south of Washington, D.C. Known for its colonial and Civil War history, it’s home to the 4 battlefields of Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park: Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Wilderness, and Spotsylvania Court House. The park’s Fredericksburg National Cemetery is the final resting place of thousands of Union soldiers.
Fredericksburg, VA is known as the childhood home of President George Washington and has played an important part in the American Civil War. Much of Fredericksburg’s tourist industry is devoted to this history, with old Georgian mansions and buildings connected to Washington, a national cemetery and military park devoted to the Battle of Fredericksburg, and plenty of museums and cultural landmarks that date back to these times. Fredericksburg is also home to great local businesses and attractions, including breweries, cafes, restaurants, theater, and shops.
Sources: https://vacationidea.com/virginia/best-things-to-do-in-fredericksburg-va.html
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