Currently the maximum debt limits for Chapter 13 are $1,010,650 in secured debt, and $336,900 in unsecured debt. On April 1, 2010, those debt limits will likely increase to $1,081,500 for secured debt, and $360,525 in secured debt. While these increases are not exactly exponential, these days every little bit helps.
Your ability to keep your tax refund while filing a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy may largely hinge on whether qualify for the
Debtors across both Oregon and Washington often wonder how they will possibly discover all their creditors prior to filing bankruptcy. Luckily, Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report each year.
While it is possible to access your credit report online, many credit reporting companies require you to give up many of your rights prior to giving you access to your credit report through their websites. Even after they give you access to your report, you have to make your way through a maze of offers to purchase services that you do not necessarily need. This being the case, the reality is that the best way to get your report is to request it by mail.
Steps to Take Before Filing A Bankruptcy In Oregon or Washington
Clients often worry about whether they will be able to open or even keep bank accounts while their bankruptcy is pending, or even after their bankruptcy is closed. In both Washington and Oregon, there are no bankruptcy laws that would prevent you from opening or keeping a bank account. There may, however, be some issues to resolve
If you are in the process of getting your case ready for filing and have a bank account with a bank or credit union that has also loaned you money, you may want to open an account at an institution to which you are not in debt. This is so because banks and credit unions generally have the right to set off the money you are holding in your account against the debt that you owe them. Even if you are current, the money in your account may be used as collateral for the debt. Granted not all institutions follow this practice, but it is often impossible to determine which ones will. In Both Washington and Oregon, credit unions are the lenders most likely seize funds held in accounts. Credit unions will often seize funds deposited after filing so watch out.
In both Oregon and Washington, clients are always at least a little bit nervous regarding the one hearing that they have to attend while their bankruptcy case is pending. That hearing, commonly known as the 341 hearing or meeting of the creditors, generally takes place a month after the case is filed. Often clients lose sleep as the hearing approaches for no good reason.
In both Oregon and Washington, creditors rarely appear at 341 creditors hearings at least that is the case here in Salem, Vancouver and Portland. Why? There is little that creditors can do at these hearings. In Portland, 341 hearing are scheduled at a rate of roughly ten per hour. This means that the trustee will rarely devote more than six minutes to any one case. Creditors who are familiar with the process rarely bother to appear: They know that there is not time to ask any significant questions, and creditors who are not familiar with the bankruptcy process will often find themselves cut off by the trustee after just a few questions.
People are often anxious about their upcoming Salem, Oregon Chapter 13 Creditors Meeting. The real underlying cause of this nervousness stems from not knowing what to expect.
Fred Long, the Chapter 13 Trustee conducts the Chapter 341 Meeting of the Creditors at the Marion County Courthouse which is located downtown at 100 High Street NE, Salem, Oregon 97309. The meetings themselves are conducted in Conference Room B148 which is in the basement of the Courthouse. Parking is fairly plentiful in the area. If you have your Chapter 13 Hearing at this location, you should allot some extra time as it can take a while to get through security.
Fred Long is the Chapter 13 Trustee for all cases filed in the Salem, Oregon metro area. He is also the Chapter 13 Trustee for most cases filed in Southern Oregon including all cases filed in Marion, Linn, Polk and Lane Counties. Correspondence to his offices can be directed to Fred Long, Chapter 13 Trustee, POB 467, Eugene, OR 97440.
