While filing bankruptcy is a good option for many people, you might still have concerns. What will your life be like after bankruptcy? How can you recover? Fortunately, filing bankruptcy can give you a fresh start and it is relatively simple to recover and get your life back. There are a few simple actions you can take to set yourself up for success in life after filing bankruptcy.
Living will, power of attorney can be a good idea
A living will and power of attorney are two instruments you can use to make decisions about your medical care. They are called advance directives since they give you the ability to make directives in advance of a catastrophic medical problem.
A living will lets you state your wishes about medical care or choose someone else to make those decisions if can't do so. A health care power of attorney also allows you to choose someone to make health care decisions if you are unable to do so yourself.
Is it possible to rebuild credit after filing for bankruptcy?
Struggling with an overwhelming amount of debt is undeniably stressful. Filing for bankruptcy may seem like a viable solution to overcome such circumstances. However, you may have questions on what life after bankruptcy will be like.
Whether you will be able to rebuild your credit is a common concern among those filing for bankruptcy. Because your credit may not currently be in the best state, doing anything to further diminish your credit score may seem impractical.
Should you consolidate debt or file for bankruptcy?
If you are trying to navigate your way through overwhelming debt, you know how stressful it can be. You are not alone in this feeling; many Americans are dealing with debt. In 2017, the amount of debt in the U.S. climbed to a new high at $13 trillion. That amount was $280 billion higher than the previous record high back in 2008.
No matter the reason why you accumulated debt, the good news is there are ways to help you. Two methods that can assist you include filing for bankruptcy and debt consolidation. People have been using both to ease or eliminate debt from their life. Each are unique so your unique situation will determine which option would be best to pursue.
3 ways to prevent an account out of collections
Most people pay a bill late or fall behind on monthly expenses from time to time. It is not unusual, but when it happens habitually, it can be seriously detrimental to your credit and finances. This is especially true if the account goes into collections. If you go long enough without making a payment on an account that has a balance, the account will eventually be sold to a collections agency.
A collections agency typically buys delinquent accounts for less than their initial value and attempts to collect payment from debtors. When an account goes into collections, it can be detrimental to your credit and trigger aggressive collection tactics. The following are three ways to avoid this:
Is your home at risk of foreclosure?
Although there is a lot of talk about the economic crisis and the recession being over, many people still face significant debt and financial trouble. If you are unable to make your mortgage payments, you may worry that the bank will foreclose on your home.
It is critical that you understand the risk of foreclosure and ways you may be able to avoid it. The following information can help you assess your risk and determine your next steps if you fear that a home foreclosure may be in your future.
3 ways to avoid excessive student debt
Student debt is one of the biggest financial problems facing millennials. Young people are not the only ones dealing with the burden, though. People of all ages have been saddled with tens of thousands of dollars in debt, and the solution is often not immediately clear. According to USA Today, the average North Carolina college graduate will have $25,849 in student loan debt upon completion of a degree.
If you are a student, here are some tips for minimizing the amount of loans and debt you must take on to graduate.
How to recognize debt settlement scams
If you, like many people across North Carolina, are finding it hard to dig your way out of ever-growing debt, you may be considering different debt relief methods while trying to determine what option might be best for you. You may have heard about debt settlement companies, which typically lure you in with promises of paying off your debts while collecting only a portion of what you owe to your creditors.
If the offers these for-profit companies make to help you settle your debt sound too good to be true, however, they may well be, and regrettably, debt settlement scams are not at all uncommon. Sometimes, these companies prey on the fact that you may be feeling helpless when it comes to your finances, and they may utilize aggressive tactics to get you to sign on. They may, too, tell you to stop paying your credit card and other bills immediately, but this is not always a good idea and can end up coming back to bite you. Furthermore, just because a debt settlement company tells you they can settle your debt for a certain percentage of what you owe, your credit card company has no obligation to accept the proposed settlement amount. So, what are some signs of potential debt settlement scams?
3 steps to take if you are behind on your credit card payments
It is scary when you are unable to make even the minimum payments on your credit card bills. If you are a few months late on multiple payments, you may be panicking. You may not think you will ever be able to catch up.
However, you do not need to give into the fear. There are various actions you may be able to take to address your credit card debt. Here are some steps you may want to consider if you are falling behind on your credit card payments.
The zombie outbreak in North Carolina – zombie homes, that is
It has been several years since the worst of the foreclosure crisis affected North Carolina, but residents are still facing foreclosure. In some cases, banks that own vacated homes across the state have yet to finish the foreclosure process. When a homeowner abandons a house with an imminent foreclosure, yet the bank fails to repossess it, this is known as a zombie foreclosure. A zombie home might not only cause problems for you years down the road, but can threaten the property values of the surrounding neighborhood.
In years past, North Carolina was among the top 10 states for having zombie foreclosures. Things are looking better in the state now, although Property Wire notes that foreclosures went back up by 4 percent in the first few months of 2018. You may be interested to learn that currently, foreclosures in North Carolina reportedly hover above the average of the months preceding the recession.
