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If you are considering either a Chapter 7 (liquidation) bankruptcy or a Chapter 13 (restructuring) bankruptcy, you should be aware of the impact of lookback periods. Bankruptcies are federal actions but they are governed by both federal and state law. A bankruptcy lookback period in Florida is no different. A lookback period is a range of time in which the bankruptcy court or trustee can look back over your finances and transactions in order to make decisions that will impact your bankruptcy. They vary in time according to the situation and factors involved. If you performed a transaction that is… Read More

Debt, or at least liability to pay it off, does not necessarily last forever. In Florida, for everything except debt involving real estate, the statute of limitation for debt is generally five years for debts with a written agreement. Credit card debt for example has a five-year Florida debt statute of limitations. So does medical debt. That means that after five years, if certain things do not happen to keep a debt alive, a creditor may no longer sue you for payment. The Florida statute of limitations for debt is shorter than that of many other states, where you may… Read More

Are you being sued by TD Auto Finance? Are you afraid you will be soon? Keep reading. A Little Background TD Auto Finance is an indirect auto financing company that finances cars through car dealerships. They are actually a subsidiary of TD Bank, which is one of the 10 biggest banks in the United States.  TD Bank has branches throughout Florida, various other states and Canada. TD Auto Finance and TD Bank are members of TD Bank Group. TD Bank Group is quite a big outfit with over $900 billion in assets. They have more than 83,000 employees worldwide. The… Read More

One of the primary concerns most individuals have about declaring bankruptcy is what they could lose.  Often clients ask if their 401k’s will go to creditors if they declare bankruptcy. If you live in Florida, your 401k is protected in two different ways. In fact, if you file for either Chapter 7 (a dissolution) or Chapter 13 bankruptcy (a reorganization), in most cases your retirement plan money will be safe from your creditors. Individual Bankruptcy Background Before we get into whether or not you can declare bankruptcy and still keep your 401k, let’s review the basics. When you declare bankruptcy,… Read More

The Florida foreclosure moratorium ended a year ago, and now the federal foreclosure moratorium has not been extended further. This has left many wondering what exactly is the Florida foreclosure process? You may have special circumstances that will help you if you are facing foreclosure, and your Florida debt collection defense attorney can help answer your questions. This article, however, addresses the Florida foreclosure process, so those facing foreclosure have an idea what to expect and can get the help they need. The Legal Basis for Foreclosure If you can’t pay your mortgage, a lender can’t just come in and… Read More

When debt collectors keep calling, what can you do if you are not sure you owe the debt or at least the amount they claim? What if you are SURE you do not owe the debt? How can you make them stop calling? Of course, you can call a Florida debt collection defense attorney who will make the debt collector contacts top immediately. If it’s a large amount and you are not sure whether you owe it, that would be your best bet. Short of that, you can send an FDCPA (Fair Debt Collections Practices Act) cease-and-desist letter. What Kind… Read More

According to a 2021 report, the average American is $90,460 in debt. A recent survey reports that 47 percent of Americans carry a monthly balance on their credit cards. 70% of those people say they cannot pay it off this year. Despite debt being so common, we live in a society that stigmatizes those who owe money. People in debt are often so ashamed they do not seek the help they need. When people feel isolated in this way, they become a prime target for exploitation. We would like to tell you about some of the primary debt collector scare… Read More

You may have something on the horizon where you need a good credit score. Perhaps you intend to buy a house in the near future and don’t want to pay high interest rates due to shaky credit. We always tell people to track your credit score regularly and we’ve spoken before about how to improve your credit score. Building a good credit score is something you do over a course of years for really good credit that lasts. But can you do anything to impact your credit score in a month or two? You betcha. The trick is to do… Read More

It’s enough to increase your heart rate and make you break out in a sweat. The debt collector is calling! Debt collectors have tricks up their sleeves, so you are right to be concerned when debt collectors call. If you owe a lot of money, it very well may be worth your while to hire a debt collection defense attorney who knows the ins and outs. But if you are planning to speak with a debt collector yourself, you need to be prepared. Consider the following advice. Keep calm Debt collectors like to keep you off balance, and often they… Read More

We all know that medical debt drives many people into bankruptcy. It’s the largest category of debt in the United States. Even if patients recover, the weight of medical bills can ruin their lives. Well, it’s even worse than we or the government or anybody else thought. A study from JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) just published in July tells us that collection agencies held $140 billion in unpaid medical bills in 2020. (The study covers January 2009 to June 2020.) A previous study done in 2016 indicated the amount was almost half that — $81 billion. It gets… Read More