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Eliminating credit card debt through bankruptcy

On Behalf of | Jan 31, 2016 | Credit Card Debt, Firm News

Your credit card company might have told you that filing for bankruptcy here in Florida will not eliminate your debt with them. Fortunately, that is not true. Credit card debt can be discharged so long as it was not incurred within 90 days of filing the petition.

Credit card debt is considered to be unsecured, which means that there is no collateral — such as a home or a car. In a Chapter 7 proceeding, unsecured debt can be discharged. This means that you will no longer be responsible for paying any of that particular debt — not one cent.

In the alternative, if you file for Chapter 13, a percentage of your credit card debt (unsecured debt) will have to be paid. All of your unsecured debt will be consolidated at zero percent interest. Your court-approved repayment plan will determine what percentage you pay, which is ordinarily small and depends on what you can afford.

Many Florida residents find that they can quickly become overwhelmed by their debts, including credit card debt, to the point that they are unable to make ends meet. Which chapter you file depends on your preference and the means test, which determines whether you meet certain income and debt requirements for a particular chapter. If you have used your credit cards within 90 days of when you want to file, your attorney will most likely recommend that you stop using them and wait until the required time period has passed before filing. If your financial situation does not improve during that time, then you could consider filing a petition.

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