As a man about to be divorced the question of financial well being to be able to rent and eat come to mind. However is bankrupty an option? When did it become necessary for you and was it beneficial? How long before you can considered non-bankrupt? Did you need an attorney and if so, approximate cost? IRS position too if you know.
Personal bankruptcy is commenced by an individual filing Chapter 7, 11, 12 or 13. The most common is Chapter 7. The debtor is allowed to exempt certain property from liquidation by the trustee.
The underlying policy of bankruptcy law is that the honest debtor who is in debt beyond his/her ability to repay the debt should be given a fresh start through the discharge of debts in a bankruptcy proceeding
Following are requirement to for filing a Chapter 7 bankruptcy:
* You must reside or have a domicile, a place of business, or property in the United States or a municipality.
* You must not have been granted a Chapter 7 discharge within the last 6 years or completed a Chapter 13 plan.
* You must not have had a bankruptcy filing dismissed for cause within the last 180 days.
* You must pass the means test (A Means test is a series of financial tests to see if the consumer qualifies for bankruptcy).
* It would not be fundamentally unfair to grant the debtor relief under Chapter 7
Chapter 13 bankruptcy can be filed if:
* It has been more than four years that the debtor has got a discharge over chapter 7, 11 or 12 bankruptcy.
* It has been two years since the debtor has got discharge under chapter 13 bankruptcy.
* If you have a co-signer for any of the debts (Under chapter 13 co-signer also gets relieved)
* A larger part of your debts includes federal tax debt.
