Here’s the lastest from BAPCPA Man in his ongoing fight for bankruptcy justice.  (Posted with persmission.)

BAPCPA Man #6 – Unemployment, median income and the means test

If you’re facing unemployment, need things explained like "median income" and the "means test," or if you just plain need Las Vegas bankruptcy help, please get in touch for a free initial consultation and we’ll do our best to be your bankruptcy heroes.

No, you should never intentionally miss a mortgage payment with the intention of qualifying for loan modification.

Especially in light of this Boston Globe article about a couple that tried that strategy.  They were told they couldn’t qualify for a loan modification unless they were 50 days late on their payment, so they just waited 50 days without making payment and tried again.  However, Washington Mutual has denied them any opportunity for a loan modification.  As a result, the couple has filed a class action lawsuit against Washington Mutual.

The couple may be justified, and WaMu may have been at fault since their policy should have been as they stated it.  But for you, an individual homeowner in Las Vegas, this is not a good strategy.  Why?  Too much stress, waiting and an uncertain outcome.  Hopefully the lawsuit will go on to help other homeowners, but if you’re worried about your financial situation, then you need to take appropriate strategic steps.

The first step is setting up a free initial foreclosure consultation with good bankruptcy attorneys in Las Vegas.  This way you’ll learn all of your options before you make any decisions to try and outflank the mortgage company on your own.

One of those options now available to Las Vegas residents is to request a mandatory foreclosure mediation session with a professional mediator.  This is part of the new Nevada Foreclosure Mediation Program recently created by the state to help Nevada homeowners facing foreclosure.  Under this program, you and your lawyer get together in a room with a professional mediator and a representative from your mortgage company.

Additionally, you still have the full protection of the bankruptcy laws on your side–Chapter 7 bankruptcy and Chapter 13 bankruptcy.  In many instances, you can still protect your home under Chapter 7 or Chapter 13.

As the bankruptcy laws and the issues surrounding foreclosure and mortgage modification have become more complex, it’s more important than ever to have an experienced Las Vegas bankruptcy attorney on your side to help guide you through the foreclosure crisis.

We want to help stop foreclosure Las Vegas.  Please get in touch with us for a free initial foreclosure consultation so we can apply our skills for your benefit.

If you’ve received a foreclosure notice in Las Vegas, or you’re worried about the possibility of foreclosure, your mortgage company can seem rather intimidating.  They’re big, hard to talk to and give the appearance of being infallible.

But the reality is that they do make mistakes.  And if you’re working with good bankruptcy attorneys in Las Vegas and have good Las Vegas bankruptcy information, then you’re more likely to catch them.

Bankruptcy judges are paying attention and have cited a number of these mistakes in their rulings.  Here are some of those mistakes and missteps, according to an article in Pro Publica.

Mortgage services have:
Attempted to collect unjustified fees
Charged homeowners for unnecessary insurance
Failed to properly credit homeowners’ payments
Failed to provide evidence to back up fee requests

When judges are aware of these problems, they often demand that servicers fix the problems and return money and fees to the homeowners.  In some cases, judges have awarded damages and attorneys’ fees.  And in one case, a judge awareded $750,000 in emotional and punitive damages to the homeowner.

The point is, even if things feel hopeless, you still have options.  And having an experienced Las Vegas bankruptcy lawyer on your side can make a big difference in protecting your assets.

Nevada residents can now take advantage of Nevada’s Foreclosure Mediation Program along with traditional negotiation and bankruptcy options.

Please get in touch with us to set up an appointment for a free foreclosure consultation.  We know the kinds of mistakes to look out for and can help make sure you get the full benefit of the bankruptcy and other laws to protect your home.

If you think you’re unhappy with your mortgage company, you should hear some of the things that bankruptcy judges and the U.S. Department of Justice are saying about mortgage companies and mortgage servicers.

Increasingly, legal rulings by bankruptcy judges and U.S. Justice Department officials about mortgage companies are using terms like "systemic abuse," "reckless" and even "extraordinary incompetence," according to an article by Karen Weise of Pro Publica titled "Bankruptcy Judges, Justice Dept. Rip Mortgage Companies."  

According to the article "major mortgages servicers regularly mess up basic accounting, improperly credit payments and charge unwarranted fees."  As a result, complaints to government agencies have shot up significantly.

An interesting point in the article is that the bankruptcy process has flushed out a lot of these abuses.  Partly because the bankruptcy process requires creditors to provide evidence for their claims.  But also because when homeowners file for bankruptcy, they hire a bankruptcy lawyer.  And if the bankruptcy lawyer is experienced and intelligent, they know what questions to ask and when something smells funny.

If you’re worried about foreclosure, don’t mess around.  Make sure you work with good bankruptcy attorneys in Las Vegas.  Dealing with a mortgage company means facing off against a combination of insidious greed and plain old incompetence.

So if you want to help stop foreclosure Las Vegas, or if you’re considering filing bankruptcy in Las Vegas, get in touch with us for a free initial foreclosure consultation so that you can enter the process with all your ducks in a row.  We’ll help you negotiate a loan modification and/or use the protections of the bankruptcy law to your full advantage.

If you think the foreclosure crisis in Las Vegas is bad now, wait until the ARMS race begins.  That is, until the adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) start re-setting over the next four years.

A recent New York Times article points out this impending trend, noting that this is going to hit prime borrowers as well as subprime borrowers.  Here’s a good quote from the article:

“Everyone’s been focused on subprime, but we’re more concerned about this,” said Todd Jadlos, managing director of LPS Applied Analytics, which analyzes data for the financial industry. “By the time subprime defaults had increased 200 percent, in June and July of 2007, option ARMs had gone up 400 percent. People just didn’t notice because the overall numbers weren’t as high.”

And if you don’t know anything else about foreclosures, you know that Las Vegas has the highest foreclosure rate in the country which means we’re going to get hit the hardest.

Help Stop Foreclosure Las Vegas
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, this is not a problem just for homeowners in Las Vegas but for our whole community.  If you’re worried about foreclosure, one of the most helpful steps you can take is to set up a free initial consultation with a good bankruptcy attorney in Las Vegas, ask questions and learn about your options.  With proper planning, you can minimize the problems that face you and hopefully keep your home as well.

Particularly now with the Nevada Foreclosure Mediation Program, which gives Nevada homeowners the ability to request a mandatory foreclosure mediation session with their mortgage lender and a professional mediator.  This program gives Las Vegas homeowners the best chance yet to negotiate a loan modification.

Please feel free to contact us for a free initial foreclosure consultation.  We’re here to help you and the entire Las Vegas community deal with the foreclosure crisis.

We loved the movie "Erin Brockovich." 

Remember it? 

Julia Roberts played Erin Brockovich, the feisty file clerk who discovers that a national energy company has conducted an industrial poisoning of an entire town, threatening the health of its residents.  Ultimately, Julia – er, we mean Erin, brings the company to justice by securing a settlement of $333 million.  The movie grossed over $250 million worldwide.  

Now, we’re sorry to report that the law firm portrayed in the movie, Masry & Vititoe, has filed for bankruptcy.   Following the death of founding partner Edward Masry in 2005 (played in the movie by Albert Finney), a whole slew of people have come forward, arguing that Masry promised them assets and cash from the firm.  Among the people making claims are Masry’s wife, who claims she is owed $1 million, and Masry’s estate, which has claims for $19,000 monthly through the year 2011, plus more for his deferred bonuses through the year 2011. 

The firm says that it has spent more than $3 million fighting the lawsuits, and has filed for bankruptcy in order to get relief from the litigation.  While it is in bankruptcy, it will continue doing business.

And now, to answer the question we know everyone wants to know:  Yes, we are available to portray the firm’s bankruptcy lawyers.  (Agents, call us!) 

As for that other question you’re asking:  Erin Brockovich no longer works for Masry & Vititoe.  According to her website, she has set her own environmental-consulting firm, and is working exclusively with Girardi & Keese on the west coast and Weitz & Luxenberg on the east coast.

Despite a somewhat misleading August 10 article in the Las Vegas Sun ("Foreclosure Crisis:  So far, few have applied for mediation"), the Nevada Foreclosure Mediation Program is now reporting that over 450 requests for mediation have been received as of August 13, according to the program’s website.

The Nevada Foreclosure Mediation Program enables homeowners who receive foreclosure notices (aka " Notices of Default and Election to Sell") to seek mediation under the program that was created by the Nevada Legislature effective July 1, 2009.  Such homeowners have 30 days from the day they received their notice to request a mediation session.

The program’s website also reports that the first two mediation sessions have been scheduled for September 14.  It’s apparently taken a little time to get the first hearings scheduled because training for mediators was held August 5-7 and the program was only recently able to officially appoint its first mediators.

You may recall from previous posts on this blog about the foreclosure mediation program (here, here, here, here and here) that the Nevada foreclosure mediation program is the only such program in the U.S. that enables homeowners to request a mandatory foreclosure mediation session with their mortgage lender.  In other words, Nevada homeowners facing foreclosure have access to the strongest anti-foreclosure tool available at the present time.

Help Stop Foreclosure Las Vegas
Las Vegas residents are facing a foreclosure crisis greater than anywhere else in the U.S.  Anything we can all do to stop foreclosure in Las Vegas and keep people in their homes will ultimately benefit not just the homeowners but our community as a whole.

Having good bankruptcy attorneys in Las Vegas is extremely important in this process.  Let us answer your questions and help you understand all of your options.

To learn more about the foreclosure mediation program or for a free foreclosure mediation consultation, please contact us to set up a phone or office appointment. 

We’ve seen it happen.  Someone files for bankruptcy, and then days, weeks or months later, he or she passes away.

What happens when a debtor in bankruptcy dies?

Nothing remarkable.  For the most part, the case continues as it had before.  The bankruptcy trustee will continue to administer the estate, bearing in mind that the debtor’s funeral expenses now have a special priority in the order of payments to creditors.  A personal representative from the deceased debtor’s probate estate may step into the debtor’s shoes to supply any information the bankruptcy trustee or the Bankruptcy Court needs.  

What’s the benefit, you ask, of a bankruptcy case continuing once the debtor has died? 

Plenty. 

A debtor’s debts do not die along with him.  Creditors will still be able to come after the deceased debtor’s property, much to the dismay of the beneficiaries of the debtor’s estate.  Continuing the bankruptcy case will ensure that may of the debtor’s debts are discharged, and will therefore allow the debtor’s beneficiaries to enjoy the property bequeathed to them without fear of creditors pursuing it. 

If you live in Nevada and have any questions about how bankruptcy can benefit you, contact our offices at 1-800-LAWYERS.  You’ll be able to schedule a free initial consultation with our expert bankruptcy lawyers, who can tell you if a bankruptcy filing is right for you.

With Las Vegas unemployment now over 13%, Las Vegas residents dealing with debt problems are likely facing increasing harassment from debt collectors.

It’s important to know that there are laws that protect you from certain debt collection practices.  And also that you have options for dealing with harassment by debt collectors.

First of all, you should always remember that there’s really nothing a debt collector can lawfully do to you to make you pay, other than suing you.  Debt collectors love to say all kinds of things on the phone, that they’ll ruin your credit, get your driver’s license taken away and much worse.  But the reality is that they can’t do any of these things.  Their bark really is worse than their bite.

Second, there’s a federal law that specifically governs what debt collectors may and may not do.  It’s called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA, 15 U.S.C. § 1692) and it prohibits debt collectors from harassing you, from using abusive language, from calling at all hours of day and night and a bunch of other things as well.

Third, here are a few things you can do to make a debt collector stop bothering you:

• Written request to stop contacting you

You can write a letter to a debt collector and request that they stop contacting you.  Any attempt after that by the debt collector to contact you is considereed harassment.  If you send a letter, it’s important to create a paper trail.  Send the letter by certified mail (which costs a little extra) so have a documented record that the letter was in fact received by the debt collection agency.

• Get a lawyer

Once you hire a lawyer to represent you and notify the debt collection agency, all future communications must be made through your retained representative (i.e., your lawyer).  Any attempt to contact you directly is a violation.

• Tell the debt collector you are recording the phone conversation

This is good for two purposes.  One, it generally discourages debt collectors from saying a lot of the crazy things they say if they know they’re being recorded.  Two, it’s good evidence to have for future use if you need to take legal action against them.

• Use the protections of the bankruptcy law
  

Under the bankruptcy law, you are protected by the automatic stay the moment you file your bankruptcy petition with the court.  This means that from the moment you file until the end of the case, no creditors, including collection agencies, are permitted to even contact you to try and collect money.

• Initiate a lawsuit against the debt collection agency

An individual may actually sue a debt collection agency if the debt collector has broken any of the laws regarding debt collection practices.  A powerful weapon for a debtor to have in its arsenal.
 

If you’re facing harassment by debt collectors and you have questions about your situation, you can always set up a free initial consultation with any good bankruptcy attorneys in Las Vegas.  It’s important to talk with someone you trust when dealing with debt collection issues and Las Vegas bankruptcy help. 

For more bankruptcy information in Las Vegas, contact us for a free debt consultation.  We’re here to help you figure out all of your options.

A debtor who files for Chapter 13 bankruptcy will need to come up with an amount that he or she will repay creditors.  This amount is usually calculated at the outset of the bankruptcy case by subtracting certain fixed costs, like a mortgage, from the debtor’s income.  The balance is called "disposable income," and is used to pay creditors. 

But what if you file bankruptcy knowing that you’re eventually going to abandon your home?  Do you still deduct the mortgage from your income?  Wouldn’t that allow you to keep the money you used to pay your mortgage when you’re not paying your mortgage anymore?

That’s the scenario that was recently before the highly esteemed Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in the bankruptcy case of Joel Turner.  Mr. Turner knew that he was going to abandon his home and stop making mortgage payments, but he still deducted the mortgage amounts from his income at the time he filed for bankruptcy, since he had not yet abandoned the home. 

The court called the issue before it an "important" one, recognizing that "in the  wake of the bursting of the housing bubble, which precipitated the current economic downturn, many mortgagors either cannot meet their mortgage obligations, or, because their house is now worth less than the unpaid balance of their mortgage, consider the house a bad investment."  

The court ultimately decided that it could look to Mr. Turner’s future financial status to determine how much he needed to pay his creditors, and criticized Mr. Turner for wanting to "use a phantom deduction to reduce the recovery by his unsecured creditors without benefiting any other creditor." 

Although it concluded that it could take into account Mr. Turner’s future plans to abandon his home, the court cautioned that bankruptcy judges "must not engage in speculation about the future income or expenses of the Chapter 13 debtor."  The court distinguished the case before it, reasoning that no such speculation existed, since the mortgage was a "fixed debt that we know will disappear before the Chapter 13 plan is approved."

Coming up with a repayment plan in your Chapter 13 bankruptcy case may prove tricky, as demonstrated by this decision.  Make sure you hire an excellent bankruptcy attorney to guide you through the process.  If you live in Nevada and have any questions about how a bankruptcy will affect you, contact us at 1-800-LAWYERS.  You’ll be able to schedule a free initial consultation with one of our expert bankruptcy lawyers, who can tell you if a bankruptcy filing is right for you.