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Benefits of Chapter 13 Bankruptcy for “Higher Income” Bankruptcy Filers

By: David M. Serafin

Posted: July 29, 2010

As an Arvada debt settlement lawyer, I typically meet with numerous clients with $100,000+ incomes who wonder if bankruptcy will really help them considering the stricter new bankruptcy laws. The mortgage payment may be too high and/or they may have high credit card debt while paying 20% - 30%+ interest. Or they may have failing real estate investments.

If, in the eyes of the Bankruptcy Code and the Colorado laws, your income (when compared to your family size) is too high, you will almost certainly be required to pay back a portion of unsecured debt to creditors through chapter 13. Depending on the circumstances, some clients pay back “pennies on the dollar” while others are required to pay back up to 100% of the unsecured debt.

You may ask why a client would file for chapter 13 bankruptcy if required to pay back 100% to unsecured creditors. The answer is that chapter 13 (on the exact date of filing) immediately stops any further accumulation of interest, penalties, late fees, finance charges, etc. charged by unsecured creditors which would otherwise continue to compound (on a daily basis) absent a bankruptcy filing. And this same strategy of filing a chapter 13 in Colorado simultaneously serves to limit the collection powers of the IRS and Colorado Department of Revenue regarding income or other tax liabilities due.

Client Reviews
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David Serafin is a talented and respectful attorney that works hard to get the best results for his clients. He's thorough at reviewing client cases and patient at explaining all the available options. I would certainly recommend him to anyone searching for help with a bankruptcy, a tax situation or estate planning. A. K.
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Mr. Serafin is a consummate professional and his hard work and legal advice are second to none. He will give you outstanding personalized legal service, and you will be glad you chose him as your attorney. While some lawyers have a bad reputation for lacking ethics, Mr. Serafin holds himself to the highest of ethical standards and is in good standing with the Colorado bar. Pick Mr. Serafin for your tax and other legal needs - you will be glad you did. R.S.
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If you are in need of a excellent attorney who will provide you support, guidance, professionalism, and most importantly, INTEGRITY. David does it all! I would not pass up his due diligence! R. T.