How To Declare Bankruptcy: The Least You Need To Know

Although everyone knows when it is time to get help with overwhelming debt, they may not know that how to declare bankruptcy takes just 3 to 6 months. The time to seek legal help is when the bills are overwhelming with endless telephone calls and threats. If bill collectors will not work with debt strapped consumers to find a way out of financial messes, it is finally time to take care of the problems with Chapter 7 wipeout or Chapter 13 workout.

The first step to claiming bankruptcy is to review finances.

• Worried people list all income.
• Consumers list all monthly expenses.
• The difference between income and expense is the monthly profit.
• If there is monthly profit, the consumer may be able to repay most of the bills over 3 to 5 years and qualifies for a Chapter 13.
• If more money goes out each month than is earned, the debtor qualifies for a Chapter 7 and eliminates most, if not all, bills.

Filling out the paperwork is the second step in how to declare yourself bankrupt.

• The forms are available on the Internet or from Bankruptcy Courts.
• As these forms are complicated, many people hire someone to help them.
• After the forms are completed, they will be filed at the Bankruptcy Court with the $299 filing fee.

In the process of how to claim bankruptcy, people need to do three things.

• Before these legal documents are filed everyone must attend a required class on finances. This qualifies them for the type of bankruptcy they can file and suggests better money management practices for the future.
• After the documents have been filed, everyone must take a financial management class before the BK will be final.
• A bankruptcy trustee will set a creditors meeting for 30 to 45 days after the BK filing date. The debtor must attend the meeting which normally lasts 2 to 5 minutes.

BK is a wonderful gift to people struggling with overwhelming debt and no hope of finding a way to pay off the bills. As the process of how to declare bankruptcy is easy, everyone can do it by themselves or with help. People simply total their income and expenses, fill out the paperwork, file the documents at the courthouse, pay the fees, take two classes and attend the creditors meeting. In just 90 to 180 days, the BK is final.