A Few Tips On Filing Bankruptcy

There are certain things that one must learn about before filing bankruptcy in Utah. If you are a person living in the state and you cannot pay off your debts then you can get relief by filing bankruptcy which will help to eliminate your entire debt.

The first option available for you is to file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy as this will allow you to succeed in restructuring your debt into one that you can easily manage and which also involves paying a certain amount on a monthly basis. Even though the courts that handle such matters are federal by nature they will still be enforcing certain rules that are specific to the state.

It is therefore important that you learn about these rules before you proceed further. In addition, it pays to complete a course in credit counseling from a place that has been approved by the courts in the state for giving out pre-bankruptcy certificates. You must complete this course within six months of filing.

Secondly, you need to put together all information related to your financial condition. This in turn means listing all your creditors and also those debt collectors that are associated with your debt. You also must provide details about your accounts including their numbers and the amount of money that is in the various accounts.

Next, be sure to estimate the amount of money that you have to spend each month on expenses such as utilities, rents and mortgage payments as well as for medicine, food and transportation. After doing this, you will then need to put together information related to your income which means gathering together your pay stubs and investments as well as the amount of money that you have paid toward Social Security and unemployment as well as pensions.

The next step is to visit the website of the Utah bankruptcy court and then you have to download their petition forms and other papers. You can also obtain these papers from a good lawyer. Once you have the papers you will need to fill out the means test which will compare the amount of money that you earn to the median for the state.

If your income is less than 48832 dollars per year then you will need to file for Chapter 7 and if your income is above this figure then you will have to file for Chapter 13 and you also need to show that you earn at least one hundred dollars per month which is available for you to dispose of in any way that you want.

After completing the petition and after providing all relevant documents along with your credit counseling certificate you have to provide these to the clerk of the court. In addition, you will need to pay the fees associated with the Chapter under which you are filing your case. You can pay the fees in cash or by money order as well as by check and even by travelers check.

You must now get the name as well as contact details of the trustee who is assigned to handle your case by the court. Finally, provide your repayment plan (for Chapter 13 only and file your plan to complete the process of filing bankruptcy in Utah.