2018 BEST GUAM LAW OFFICE! THANK YOU GUAM!

Thank you Guam for voting our office 'Best Law Office' 2nd year in a row! After all the hard work we give, it is truly an honor to be thanked this way.

Check out more valuable information about Guam's Laws and working with Mark Williams, Guam's Best Lawyer, on Dededo Law Office's website, www.GuamLegal.com.

Waiting to file Bankruptcy can hurt you

By the time most people declare bankruptcy, their well-being and peace of mind, and financial life are all damaged, including family relationships, undermining the fresh start the law offers to those with debts beyond their ability to pay.

The time a person waits before filing bankruptcy is sometimes known as the financial “sweatbox.” According to a 2018 Notre Dam Law Review Study That’s the period when people are facing loss of assets including homes, wages and retirement funds, debt collection lawsuits and forgoing basic necessities like food to avoid filing bankruptcy.

Some people look at bankruptcy as financial and personal failure.  Often health and peace of mind and retirement funds are wasted in the attempt to pay debts which are beyond the ability to pay. And creditors will collect every penny, that is their job. Our job is to help you. Please understand that the improvement to Debt-to-Income ratios and elimination of derogatory credit reporting resulting CAN give you the higher credit scores, EVEN WITH bankruptcy on your record.

Check out more valuable information about Guam's Laws and working with Mark Williams, Guam's Best Lawyer, on Dededo Law Office's website, www.GuamLegal.com.

BANKRUPTCY CAN HELP

Filing for bankruptcy may help

Ask yourself these questions, are you struggling with debt? Only paying the minimum balance on your credit cards each month? Are you behind on mortgage or car payments? Losing sleep because of the stress and uncertainty of your financial situation?

We realize nobody likes to talk about their financial problems; about creditor harassment, home foreclosure, car repossession, lawsuits, wage garnishments and judgment liens. 

You are not alone. We can help. 

Stop foreclosure NOW

Stop wage garnishments NOW

Stop collection harassment NOW

Stop repossessions NOW

 

Call Now 637-9620.  www.bankruptcylawyerguam.com

 
Call the Law Office of Mark Williams.  We are Guam’s Best Bankruptcy Lawyer.

Check out more valuable information about Guam's Laws and working with Mark Williams, Guam's Best Lawyer, on Dededo Law Office's website, www.GuamLegal.com.

If you have been served with court papers from a creditor, we can help STOP that action.

A Chapter 7 case can allow you to discharge most or all of your debts and receive a fresh start.  A Chapter 13 repayment plan can help you solve your financial problems by consolidating your debts into one monthly payment.  It can also help you keep your property while preventing creditors from collecting from you.

 

In most cases, we can start work on your case with a deposit and the balance on EASY TERMS.

 

If you are not sure what to do, please call at 637-9620 or 637-9621 for a free friendly telephone consultation.

Check out more valuable information about Guam's Laws and working with Mark Williams, Guam's Best Lawyer, on Dededo Law Office's website, www.GuamLegal.com.

TOO BROKE FOR BANKRUPTCY?

Thousands of people will soon get their tax refunds, and many will finally be able to afford the protection of their family, their paycheck and their property which they have needed for a long time, if not years:  bankruptcy protection

The number of bankruptcy filings usually jumps way up in March, when tax refunds go out, and stays high through April, and then declines.

The problem seems to be that bankruptcy often fails those it’s supposed to help.  People see that they are too broke to go bankrupt.  Filing costs money, as does hiring an attorney, which is the best way to make sure you actually get the debt relief you need.

“Bankruptcy is kind of a worthless solution if you can’t pay because you don’t have money,” said one man who lives in a tin-roof home in a rural area.  “The law isn't there to protect us.”
People say the same thing again and again: If they had $1,500 to pay an attorney, then they probably wouldn’t need to file bankruptcy in the first place!  This ignores the fact that the attorney’s fees are far less than the typical amount of debt that can be discharged in bankruptcy.

People who hire lawyers to help them file bankruptcy have their debts wiped away in almost every case, which is not true for most cases not filed by an attorney.  Those who file alone are often unsuccessful in wiping out their debts and make costly mistakes and miss out on rebuilding their credit scores and protecting their family, property and take-home pay. 

“If there was adequate access to our legal system for those who need it most,” a judge has said, vulnerable people with debt “would not be subject to the fraud artists who claim to be able to prepare bankruptcy without an attorney.”

Individuals can avoid most of the up-front costs of filing bankruptcy by filing under Chapter 13.  Unlike Chapter 7, Chapter 13 is a payment plan that usually lasts five years, and the fees, which are set by the court, are higher for a Chapter 13, but these fees can be paid over the 5-year plan.  And like Chapter 7, the protection against creditors is immediately when the case is filed. 

There are thousands of financially struggling households, many of which would benefit from bankruptcy protection and re-building their credit.  The reasons someone may or may not file for bankruptcy can be complex, and most of the information distributed to the public is wrong, or is sourced from the deep-pocket financial industry for which bankruptcy is the most hated of options, for only one reason:  it is the only option that can absolutely prevent the collection of your debt, because it is based on Federal Law, and so it is supreme over all legal claims and actions taken against you to collect dischargeable debt by your creditors.

The clear issue is affordability.  And so, if attorney fees are the concern, the good news is that there are options to take care of the issue of affordability.  Do not hesitate to talk to an experienced bankruptcy attorney for a free consultation to understand all of your options.

Attorney Mark Williams has over 22 years of experience in turning around people's financial situation.  He can help you too. #1 trusted bankruptcy attorney in Guam.  The Law really is on your side.

Check out more valuable information about Guam's Laws and working with

Mark Williams, Guam's Best Lawyer, on Dededo Law Office's websites: www.guamlegal.com www.bankruptcylawyerguam.com  www.injurylawyerguam.com                

Bankruptcy And Car Loans

Personal bankruptcy offers a number of options to address an “too expensive car” problem.

If you’re already in arrears the easiest choice would be to use the power of bankruptcy to cancel contracts and surrender your vehicle back to the lender. In a Chapter 7, any deficiency balance will be discharged as an unsecured debt. 

However, the good news is that under a Chapter 13, any deficiency balance will be paid as an unsecured debt, often at pennies on the dollar – and only if the lender bothers to file a proof of claim as required.

There are several other tools available in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. 

For example, if you want to keep your car without the "too expensive" loan, then another option would be to restructure the car loan as part of a Chapter 13. 

If your car loan was originated more than 910 days (about 2 ½ years) prior to filing, a Chapter 13 "cram-down" this can allow you to modify the interest rate, reduce the principal to the blue book value of your car, and extend the term for 5 years, all of which has the effect of lowering your car payment, and if you owe substantially more than the value of your vehicle, or if your interest rate is much higher than the market interest rate, this "cram-down" can save you thousands of dollars!

If you cannot restructure the car loan, another Chapter 13 tool available would allow you to reduce your monthly payment by including the unpaid balance in your Chapter 13 plan, and setting a monthly payment that fits your budget.

Obviously, the decision to file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 should be made in consultation with an experienced bankruptcy lawyer and with full knowledge about how bankruptcy will impact you.  But if you have one or more car loans that are causing you problems with payments, you should learn about and consider all of your legal options.

Attorney Mark Williams has over 22 years of experience in bankruptcy.  He can help you too. #1 trusted bankruptcy attorney in Guam.  The Law really is on your side.

Check out more valuable information about Guam's Laws and working with

Mark Williams, Guam's Best Lawyer, on Dededo Law Office's websites: www.guamlegal.com www.bankruptcylawyerguam.com  www.injurylawyerguam.com                

Car loans are our most expensive purchases next to a home loan. According to an article in USA Today, the average cost of a new car or truck is $33,500.  Due to lenders now extending car loans to 72 months or longer, when you factor in interest rates, you can easily find yourself responsible for $40,000, $50,000 or more.

Despite popular belief, cars are not an investment asset the reason is because vehicles do not appreciate, they always depreciate.  In many cases if you finance a vehicle over 60 months, you may actually owe more on your auto loan than the vehicle is worth. 

When a vehicle is underwater (owe more than the value of an asset) the loan can't be eliminated by simply selling the vehicle.

A great example of this type of situation that could cause a calamity would be in the event of a car accident, where a car is "underwater", not only do insurance premiums rise due to an accident claim, but typically insurance benefits are based on the replacement cost, or blue-book value,  and not the higher loan balance, so that a car loan which is "underwater" results in you having a balance to pay for a car (which you no longer own after the car has been destroyed in an accident)!

Unexpected changes in income due to a job loss or change in the family, illnesses, "underwater" insurance payouts after an accident, or any number of other factors could turn that car loan into a major financial headache.

Bankruptcy and Car Loans

Personal bankruptcy offers a number of options to address this “underwater car loan” problem.

The easiest choice would be to use the power of bankruptcy to cancel contracts and surrender the vehicle back to the lender.  This is only possible in bankruptcy, because any remaining loan balance would be subject to elimination, or discharge.  Outside of Bankruptcy, you would still owe the "underwater" portion of the car loan balance.

Another option would be to use Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code to restructure a car loan for a vehicle you wish to keep.  

Chapter 13 can often allow you to lower your car loan expense by reducing the principal and lowering the interest rate, and extending the loan term up to an additional 5 years. 

Depending on the balance of your car loan, this strategy can save you thousands of dollars.

Obviously the decision to file bankruptcy should be made in consultation with an experienced bankruptcy lawyer.  However, if you are having problems with car payments, you should certainly learn about and consider all of your bankruptcy options.  

We can help - Ask us how!

Check out more valuable information about Guam's Laws and working with Mark Williams, Guam's Best Lawyer, on Dededo Law Office's website, www.GuamLegal.com. http://www.injurylawyerguam.com/  http://bankruptcylawyerguam.com/