Personal Bankruptcy for Dummies Book

	Introduction	1
	The Jim/John Solution	1
	How This Book Is Organized	2
	Icons (Signposts) Used in This Book	4
Part I	Bankruptcy: The Big Picture	5
Chapter 1	Considering Bankruptcy	7
	Viewing Bankruptcy in Historical Context	8
	Debunking Bankruptcy Myths	10
	Understanding What You Can Gain Through Bankruptcy	14
	Knowing What You Can Lose in Bankruptcy	18
	Considering Alternatives to Bankruptcy	19
	Introducing the Different Types of Personal Bankruptcy	20
	Weighing the Consequences of Not Filing Bankruptcy	21
	Using the Statute of Limitations	23
Chapter 2	Stopping the Bleeding	25
	Preventing Further Damage Now	26
	Comparing Your Income with Your Spending	27
	Assessing Your Spending Habits	34
	Getting a Handle on What You Own	36
	Figuring Out How Much You Owe	39
	Coming Out of the Financial Closet	41
Chapter 3	Meeting the Players	45
	Finding Professional Help	45
	Getting to Know the Players	50
Chapter 4	Deciding Which Type of Bankruptcy Is Best for You	55
	Deciding Whether to Go Solo or As a Married Couple	55
	Looking at Your Probable Bankruptcy Choices	56
	Deciding Between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13	62
	Considering Other Types of Bankruptcy	66
	Changing Your Mind	67
Chapter 5	Getting from Here to There: The Bankruptcy Process	69
	Getting Organized before Talking to a Lawyer	69
	Meeting Your Lawyer for the First Time	73
	Completing the Paperwork	74
	Filing Your Bankruptcy Case	74
	Working Your Way through Chapter 7	79
	Working Your Way through Chapter 13	83
	Comparing the Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Processes	85
Part II	Avoiding Bankruptcy	87
Chapter 6	Considering Alternatives to Bankruptcy	89
	Appreciating the Negative Consequences of Bankruptcy	90
	Looking at Remedies Other Than Bankruptcy	92
	Choosing Which Bills to Pay First (If at All)	98
	Negotiating with Your Creditors	101
	Considering Credit Counseling Services	103
	Simply Ignoring Creditors	104
Chapter 7	Handling Bill Collectors	107
	Taming the Toothless Tiger: The Bill Collector	108
	Invoking Federal Law	109
	Tapping State Laws	113
	Keeping Your Dukes Up	114
Chapter 8	Negotiating with the IRS	117
	Looking at the Tax Collection Process	117
	Making Nice with the Touchy-Feely IRS	119
	Submitting an Offer in Compromise	123
	Getting Help from a Taxpayer Advocate	124
Part III	Keeping Your Stuff	125
Chapter 9	Understanding Which Assets Are Off-Iimits to Creditors	127
	Grasping the Legal Concepts	127
	Determining the Value of Your Stuff	132
	Understanding How the Courts View Certain Assets	132
	Creating Exemptions	143
Chapter 10	Dealing with Secured Debts	145
	Getting the Lowdown on Liens	146
	Identifying Different Kinds of Liens	147
	Dealing With Liens in Bankruptcy	149
	Figuring Out What Will Happen to Your Car	151
	Applying Lien Laws to Household Goods	154
	Banging the Gavel on Judgment Liens	155
Chapter 11	Saving Your Home	157
	Your Home, Your Castle--and Sometimes Your Hassle	157
	Dealing with Jointly Owned Property	160
	Understanding How Foreclosures Work	162
	Heading off the Homewreckers	163
	Using Truth-in-Lending Laws	169
	Coping When Your Dream Home Becomes a Nightmare	170
Part IV	Getting Rid of (Most of) Your Debt	173
Chapter 12	Lingering Obligations	175
	Recognizing (Possibly) Indelible Debts	175
	Sweating Out the 60-day Bar Date	181
	Avoiding the Urge to Borrow to Pay Nondischargeable Debts	182
	Understanding Reaffirmation Agreements	183
	Having Your Discharge Denied or Revoked	184
Chapter 13	A House of Cards: Wiping Out Credit-Card Debts	187
	Playing the Credit-Card Game	187
	Seeing What Judges See	189
	Examining Your Mind-set When You Incurred the Debt	190
	Forcing the Credit-Card Company to Prove Its Case	191
	Explaining Presumptively Fraudulent Charges	192
	Defending Against False Financial Statement Allegations	192
	Using Credit-Card Advances for Gambling	193
	Bullying the Credit-Card Bullies	193
	Transferring Credit-Card Balances	194
	Having a Bankruptcy Dismissed for Credit-Card Abuse	195
Chapter 14	Give unto Caesar: Using Bankruptcy to Deal with Tax Debts	197
	Dealing with the Federal Tax Man	197
	Dealing with the State Tax Man	204
	Addressing Taxes Other Than Income Taxes	205
	Obtaining Loans to Pay Your Taxes	206
Chapter 15	The Devil Made Me Do It: Fines, Fraud, and Other Foibles	207
	Dealing with Debts Resulting from Fraud	208
	Covering Fines, Penalties, and Restitution Orders	212
	Accepting Responsibility for Drunken-driving Injuries	214
Chapter 16	Till Debt Due Us Part: Bankruptcy and Divorce	215
	Introducing Key Points	215
	Planning Your Strategy	216
	Understanding How Support Obligations Are Treated in Bankruptcy	220
	Understanding How Property Divisions Are Treated in Bankruptcy	224
Chapter 17	Student Loans and Other Mind Games	229
	Tracing Your Loans	230
	What They Can Do If You Don't Pay	231
	Managing Student Loans with Bankruptcy	231
	Managing Student Loans without Bankruptcy	239
Part V	Strategies for a Successful Bankruptcy	243
Chapter 18	Avoiding Troubles with Your Trustee	245
	Playing by the Rules and Telling the Truth	245
	Accurately Listing Your Assets	247
	Appreciating the Trustee's Ability to Recover Assets	247
	Protecting Your Discharge	254
Chapter 19	Living on the Edge in Chapter 13 Bankruptcy	255
	Creating a Realistic Plan	256
	Keeping Your Lawyer in the Loop	257
	Blowing It ... Again? Not!	258
	Tackling Car and Mortgage Payments Outside the Plan	265
	Addressing Debts Incurred After You File	268
	Sinking Your Ship before It Arrives	270
	Tying Things Together	271
Part VI	Enjoying Your Fresh Start	275
Chapter 20	Repairing Your Credit	277
	Realizing that You've Already Taken the First Step by Filing Bankruptcy	278
	Using the Fair Credit Reporting Act to Your Advantage	278
	Getting Your Credit Reports after Bankruptcy	279
	Obtaining New Credit	283
	Watching Out for Credit-repair Scams	286
	Establishing Good Credit When You're Married	286
Chapter 21	Staying Out of Financial Trouble	289
	Addressing Compulsive Spending	289
	Building a Consensus with Loved Ones	290
	Using a Budget	291
	Avoiding Temptation	292
	Making a Few Lifestyle Changes	293
	Recognizing Danger Signs	295
Part VII	The Part of Tens	297
Chapter 22	Ten Common Bankruptcy Mistakes	299
	Borrowing Money from Relatives	299
	Repaying Money Owed to Relatives	300
	Chipping Away at Debts with a Home-equity Loan	300
	Draining Retirement Accounts to Pay Debts	300
	Neglecting to Accurately List All Creditors	301
	Concealing Your Assets	301
	Transferring Assets to Keep Them Away from Creditors	301
	Making Payments that You Can't Afford to Make	301
	Thinking that Bankruptcy Is Your Last Resort	302
	Filing Bankruptcy Too Soon	302
Chapter 23	Ten Things You Can Do Right Now to Ease Your Financial Woes	303
	Stop Feeling Guilty	303
	Cut Up Your Credit Cards	304
	Order Your Credit Reports	304
	Keep Track of Everything You Buy	305
	Get Your Name off Any Joint Accounts	305
	Stop Making Partial Payments on Credit-card Bills	305
	Call a Lawyer Now If You're Being Sued or Foreclosure Is Underway	305
	Find Out How Much Your Home and Car Are Worth	306
	Empty Accounts in Banks Where You Owe Money	306
	Sharpen Your Pencil and Start Filling Out the Worksheets in Chapter 2	306
Chapter 24	Ten Common Questions about Bankruptcy	307
	Will Bankruptcy Damage My Credit Rating?	307
	Will Bankruptcy Affect My Job?	308
	Will I Lose My Home?	308
	Will I Lose My Personal Belongings?	308
	Will I Ever Be Able to Buy a House?	308
	Does My Spouse Have to File Bankruptcy Too?	309
	Can I Keep Some Debts Off My Bankruptcy and Deal with Them Separately?	309
	Can I Cancel My Bankruptcy If I Change My Mind?	310
	Is Filing Bankruptcy a Long, Protracted Process?	310
	Does It Cost a Bundle to File?	310
Appendix A	Glossary	311
Appendix B	Exemption Laws	327
	Choosing between Federal and State Exemptions	327
	Identifying Bankruptcy Code Exemptions	328
	Surveying State Exemptions	330
	Index	347