Strip Second Mortgage

in Bankruptcy Insights, Bankruptcy Law, Foreclosure Law

The ability to strip off a second mortgage in bankruptcy is one of the most powerful tools bankruptcy law provides. In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy you can strip off, or avoid, a second mortgage, home equity line of credit, or other junior lien and never owe a penny on that debt again. That means your obligation to pay back that second mortgage is permanently discharged, i.e. wiped out. The second mortgage lender can never try to collect from you after the Chapter 13 case is done. Also, and equally important, the lender must re-convey the second deed of trust...

16 April

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Mortgage Modification In Bankruptcy

Posted by Brian Barta

in Bankruptcy Insights, Bankruptcy Law, Foreclosure Law

Mortgage modifications in bankruptcy at Law Offices of Brian Barta

For several years now, at least since the real estate market downturn in 2006, homeowners have struggled to modify their underwater mortgages. Most homeowners have failed at successfully obtaining a modification because home loan lenders initially weren’t set up to do modifications. Mortgage lenders would represent to borrowers that the various programs were available, but in fact getting a modification was nearly impossible. Borrowers applied through the Keep Your Home California program, the HAMP program, the HARP program, and other government sponsored or instituted modification systems, but the lenders did not have the staff, resources, or desire to actually modify...

17 November

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When a Cheap Bankruptcy Attorney Isn’t Really Cheap

Posted by Brian Barta

in Bankruptcy Law

How much does a bankruptcy cost? Well, when it comes to hiring a bankruptcy attorney, hiring the lawyer that charges the lowest fee often turns out to be an expensive and sometimes tragic mistake. Most competent and experienced bankruptcy lawyers in Sonoma County, California, charge the same fee for a given case; the fee quote may be slightly higher or lower, but good attorneys know how much time and energy a particular case will take and charge accordingly. Why do some bankruptcy attorneys in Sonoma County charge so much less than others? If you see an attorney advertising that she will do bankruptcies...

13 November

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Is Bankruptcy Really A Fresh Start?

Posted by Brian Barta

in Debt Relief Insights

In my 24 years of helping clients in Santa Rosa, California, and throughout Sonoma County, get a fresh financial start I have been reassuring clients, and telling them what a new study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has now concluded; people who file bankruptcy do better financially in the long run, than those who don't. Today the biggest financial calamity looming ahead of 50% of people is not their immediate debt, but the inability to save for even a modest retirement. Money spent on monthly payments for credit card debt, personal loans and revolving debt pays the interest...

30 January

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If I File For Bankruptcy Do I Get To Keep My Property?

Posted by Brian Barta

in Bankruptcy Insights

One of the first and most frequently asked questions I get as a Sonoma County Bankruptcy Attorney is, “If I file for bankruptcy do I get to keep my property?” Clients are understandably anxious about losing their car and not being able to get to work, or even more importantly, they want to make sure their home will be safe. Clients often have substantial retirement accounts that they absolutely cannot lose. Short Answer: Yes The short answer and the good news is, “Yes, you can keep your property if you file for bankruptcy.” In fact, in the most common type of bankruptcy...