When determining how to handle your bank account before bankruptcy, there are few things you need to consider.

Do you owe money at the same bank where you have a checking or savings account? Oftentimes, debtors considering bankruptcy bank and hold their mortgage at the same place.  Or, they have automatic payments coming out of their bank accounts for a credit card or car payment.  If that’s the case and …

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… while not cutting into the massive profits they make on overdraft fees.

The article said:

“Bank of America, Wachovia and JPMorgan Chase & Co. said they will limit the number of fees they charge and make it easier for customers to refuse overdraft protection… JPMorgan Chase will provide overdraft protection for debit cards only for customers who opt in. And rather than debiting withdrawals and purchases in order of size, from largest to smallest, they will be debited in the order …

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… take them to be debt free if only minimum payments are made may not effectively reach debtors who bank online or pay their credit card bill through automatic electronic payment.  Debtors who bank online and forgo credit card paper statements may need to navigate through a series of web pages and download a PDF file to access the new disclosure information.  But according to many debtor advocates, most credit card debtors don’t move beyond the initial web page which tells them their …

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… found that credit cards offered by credit unions may offer lower rates and cheaper fees than their bank issued counterparts.

The article said:

“The study found that the median advertised interest rates for credit cards issued by the nation’s 12 largest credit unions were 20% lower than those for bank-issued cards. All told, the study looked at 400 financial institutions and was conducted by an arm of the nonprofit and non-partisan Pew Charitable Trust.”

But according to the study, …

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… check obligations.  Fortunately, bankruptcy discharges bounced check debts and other associated bank debts such as overdraft fees. The check reporting companies are obligated to accurately list the debtor’s account as “$0″ balance or “discharged in bankruptcy.” But some debtors may still have trouble opening a bank account after their bankruptcy discharge due to inaccurate reporting by one or more check reporting companies such as Chex Systems, Telecheck and SCAN.  Here’s what …

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When a debtor files bankruptcy he/she needs to consider the effect it may have on his/her bank accounts.  Usually when a debtor files bankruptcy, his/her bank accounts are not negatively impacted unless of course there are overdraft fees, bounced checks etc. that need to be paid.  But there are some cases where a bank account may be affected by bankruptcy.

Is your bank also your creditor?  If a debtor files bankruptcy and has a bank account with one of his/her creditors, the …

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… companies are failing to properly notify debtors of lawsuits and many debtors are finding their bank accounts seized having never received notice that they were being sued.

An article in the New York Times illustrates the fallout of the phenomenon:

“Part of the problem is the business model of these debt collection lawsuits,” Ms. Coffey said. Creditors often have bought the loans from another financial company, she said, and then hired companies that specialize in collections to …

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According to an article in the Star-Telegram, Chase Bank has caved in to pressure from their customers and consumer advocacy groups and has agreed to refund $4.4 million of what some called illegal fees to 184,000 customers. In January, Chase imposed a $10 monthly fee on 184,000 customers who were holding balances on their low-interest Chase credit cards. Chase also raised the monthly minimum payment from 2 percent to 5 percent. The minimum …

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According to an article in the Star-Telegram, Bank of America has agreed to pay $7.46 million to over 3,000 Texans who lost their homes in foreclosure because of subprime mortgages issued by Countrywide Financial, which is now owned by Bank of America. Each household will receive approximately $2,330 in restitution as part of the settlement. Just enough money for first and last month’s rent on the rental they will never own no matter …

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… facing foreclosure want to know if they should attempt to modify their mortgage with the bank or file for bankruptcy. It’s a tough call. Your decision to modify your mortgage through your bank depends on a few factors. Are you in imminent danger of foreclosure? Are you already delinquent on paying your mortgage? Do you have other financial disasters waiting to happen besides foreclosure? If you’re facing imminent foreclosure and have other financial issues, attempting to modify …

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Bank of America Corp. announced in a letter to the Texas Workforce Commission that there will be 85 job losses at a Dallas call center. The job losses are just one of the many actions Bank of America is taking to streamline its operations and save itself financially and avoid bankruptcy.

As most know, Bank of America has received a sizable bailout fund; but I suspect this fund won’t be …

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According to an article in the Star-Telegram, Bank of America reported a $2.39 billion fourth-quarter loss after receiving a $20 billion bailout AGAIN from the Bush Administration.

The article said:

BofA cited rising credit costs, significant write downs and trading losses in its capital markets businesses amid the deepening economic recession. Merrill Lynch posted a loss of $15.31 billion, or $9.62 per share, for the period – …

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