The Treasury Department has admitted that the Making Home Affordable (HAMP) foreclosure prevention program has not made the type of impact that was expected.  In response the Treasury Department is instituting new rules that will take effect on June 1, 2010.

The new HAMP requirements will force servicers to have in hand all the needed documents from borrowers before they extend a …

Tags: foreclosure HAMP Lenders Mortgage United States Department of the Treasury

Permalink: /foreclosures/treasury-department-admits-foreclosure-prevention-program-not-as-successful-as-hoped/

According to an article in the Star-Telegram, the Congressional Oversight Panel which is responsible for making regular assessments of the $700 billion financial bailout of banks has reported that the foreclosure plan “Making Home Affordable” has failed to hit the mark.  The committee recommended that the Treasury Department either improve the program or adopt a new program that directly addresses foreclosures …

Tags: foreclosure Mortgage modification United States Department of the Treasury

According to an article in the Dallas Morning News, the Labor Department announced that new claims for unemployment insurance benefits dropped last week to a seasonally adjusted 521,000.

The article said:

“Despite the improvement, initial claims remain well above the 325,000 that economists say is consistent with a healthy economy.”

Also, there are still 8.9 million Americans continuing to receive unemployment …

Tags: Unemployment United States Department of Labor

Permalink: /job_loss_unemployment/unemployment-claims-fall-slightly-but-economy-is-still-on-the-rocks/

According to an article in the Dallas Morning News, the most recent U.S. Census Bureau figures states that Texas leads the nation in the percentage of residents without health insurance.  More than 1 out of every 4 Texans are without health insurance, a total of 6 million residents and Texas leads the nation in the numbers of children who go without health insurance.

The article said:

“…Texas had the nation’s …

Comment by Jacob Decker: … expenses is one of the most substantial reasons many …

Tags: Bankruptcy Health Uninsured in the United States

Permalink: /medical_bills/six-million-uninsured-texans-stand-on-the-brink-of-medical-bankruptcy/

The Labor Department said Thursday that the number of new jobless claims rose to 480,000 last week when many economists were hoping for a decline and a sign that the job losses would be improving soon.

But the rise in weekly claims of 7,000 last week, which had followed an increase of 19,000 the previous week, shows that the improvement has been halting. Analysts believe that claims need to …

Tags: Economy Job Loss Unemployment United States

The Labor Department claims that the number jobless workers applying for unemployment for the first time is steadily decreasing; but could that mean a spike in bankruptcy filings?

Initial claims for unemployment insurance rose by 17,000 to a seasonally adjusted 474,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was above analysts’ expectations of 460,000 new claims… The number of people …

Tags: Bankruptcy Labor Department Recession Unemployment United States

Image via Wikipedia

Most people have at least passing knowledge of wage garnishment–the process of deducting money from an employee’s monetary compensation (including salary) as a result of a court order.  Fortunately for those who find themselves in the unfortunate position of having their wages garnished, these payments are limited by federal law to 25 percent of the employee’s disposable income.  Unfortunately, those payments will continue until …

Tags: Bankruptcy Chapter 13 Title 11 United States Code Garnishment Internal Revenue Service tax

President Obama just sent his legislative package to Congress to create the new Consumer Financial Protection Agency.  The new agency’s purpose will be to protect consumers from deceptive or confusing practices by financial institutions.  Chances are, however, that many consumers who are currently struggling with financial stress are not likely to see the immediate effects of this program.  In the mean time, some bankruptcy courts are looking for alternatives to …

Tags: bankruptcy law Lawyers and Law Firms United States United States bankruptcy court United States District Court for the Southern District of New York

… through a “credit counselor”, explore working through an attorney instead.

You hire the attorney to work on YOUR BEHALF.  And you can be sure the attorney will work within the law.

Bankruptcy is a federal law written specifically to PROTECT YOU from creditors.  The law is racked with extensive code detailing its parameters and is heavily regulated to ensure that mistakes and violations are prevented.

While there may be credit counselors who have honorable intentions, the …

Tags: Bankruptcy Better Business Bureau Business Credit history Credit score Federal Trade Commission Law United States

Call your representatives now! We need your help! See below for contact information.

The House Rules Committee just minutes ago agreed to allow the bankruptcy modification amendment to be considered on the House floor as an amendment to the broader financial services reform bill AS EARLY AS THIS AFTERNOON!!

H.R. 4173 being offered by Reps. Conyers, Turner, Lofgren, Marshall and others  will help financially distressed families avoid foreclosure. This amendment will empower …

Tags: Bankruptcy Community Action Financial services foreclosure Mortgage United States House Committee on Rules

… that retail store sales dropped a staggering 7.5 percent in November.  In an effort to cut costs, the company is implementing job losses and outsourcing its information technology department.  New jobs will go India.  Is this a trend?  As job losses mount and the recession clamps down on consumer spending, many large companies (and some small companies) are turning to foreign workers to find cheap labor, leaving many American workers unemployed for a longer stretch of time.

Since …

Tags: Job Loss Neiman Marcus Outsourcing United States

… we highlighted a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case where student loan debt was partially discharged. The bankruptcy discharge was challenged by the creditor and has made its way to the Supreme Court.  Here is an overview of the decision made by lower courts last year:

In the case of ( Espinosa v. United Student Aid Funds Inc., No. 06-16421, 9th Cir. 10/02/08) the court stated:

“Our long-standing circuit law holds that student loan debts can be discharged by way of a Chapter 13 plan …

Tags: Bankruptcy Supreme Court of the United States