Why Us?
Bankruptcy. The Facts.
Warning Signs of Financial Distress
If you are in financial trouble, you are not alone. Every year the attorneys at Lewis & Jurnovoy, P.A. have helped thousands of people just like you find the legal solutions they needed to put their finances and their lives back on track.
Please take a moment to answer the questions below. This quiz is designed to determine whether or not you should seek the advice of a Bankruptcy professional. It is important that you answer each question openly and honestly.
Are bill collectors constantly calling you at home or work?
If you have answered “YES” to any of these questions, you may be experiencing financial difficulty and should take steps to re-examine your financial priorities, budget and credit obligations. If you need help arrange your FREE BANKRUPTCY CONSULTATION today at any one of three convenient locations (Pensacola, Fort Walton or Panama City).
Dispelling the Myths
You are a bad person for filing bankruptcy.
Not True. There is a reason that over one million people file for bankruptcy each year and it is not because they are bad people. Most of the people who file bankruptcy are good, honest, hard-working people, just like you and me, who file as a last resort after months or years of struggling to pay the bills. The bills may be from some life-changing experience, such as a divorce, the loss of a job, a failed business venture, a serious illness, growing old, some family emergency, or because you honestly and mistakenly fell into debt at a young age before you knew better, before you knew anything about budgeting or how to manage money.
The truth is Bankruptcy is a solution to help good people go through a bad time. It provides hard working people with the fresh start that they deserve, but are not able to obtain. If you need to file, bankruptcy is one of the most positive, responsible, honorable and noble steps you can take on behalf of your family and your family’s future, happiness and prosperity.
Filing for bankruptcy hurts your credit for 10 years.
Not True. You are getting 2 completely different concepts confused with each other. You are getting the fact that bankruptcy is reported on your credit report for up to 10 years mixed up with the effect that reporting will have on your credit. Just because something is reported on your credit report does NOT necessarily mean it will have a negative effect on your credit standing. In fact, most people’s credit scores improve after filing.
Why don’t you look at it like this? By the time you need to make an appointment to see a bankruptcy attorney, your credit is already messed up or maxed out…or both…or at least strongly headed in that direction. Think about it. If your credit is already messed up or maxed out, you…more than likely…have no credit for bankruptcy to hurt.
In my experience, if you have not re-established good credit in 2 to 4 years after you file bankruptcy, it most likely has nothing to do with the fact that you filed bankruptcy. And it certainly has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that your credit history still shows an old bankruptcy filing.
Although the bankruptcy will stay on your credit, the truth is you can start rebuilding your credit once your bankruptcy is discharged. Making current, full payments on debt is one way to start building your credit while you are still in the bankruptcy.
Everyone will know you filed for bankruptcy.
Not True. Bankruptcy is public record but unless you are a prominent official or a celebrity in society, people aren’t going to go looking. The only people who are going to know are your creditors, those who you tell and those who have access to the bankruptcy court record system. Some people think that newspapers carry bankruptcy filing information, but in our area, this is simply not true.
You can pick and choose what to put into bankruptcy.
Not True. You do have to list all of the debts that you owe and the property that you own. You cannot discriminate between creditors, even if you want to keep paying them. It is good to want to continue paying creditors, but it is still mandatory to include the debt. If you feel like paying it after the bankruptcy then go ahead, but you will not be obligated to. In fact, after bankruptcy, there are some debts you have to keep paying. For example, if you have a vehicle or house loan, it must be listed in your bankruptcy, but if you want to keep the vehicle or the house you must pay the loan.
It’s hard to file for bankruptcy.
Not True with the help of an experienced bankruptcy lawyer. There is a lot of paperwork involved, but having a skilled attorney makes the process much smoother, assists you in filing the proper papers and and helps you keep as much of your property as possible.
With our help the bankruptcy filing is easy. The decision to file may be hard, but once the decision is made, filing is easy.
