The short answer is no. Filing bankruptcy DOES NOT affect a cosigner’s credit. A bankruptcy only goes onto the credit report of the person who filed the bankruptcy. The tradeline for the cosigner, sometimes called a codebtor, will also not say bankruptcy. If the payments on the loan stop, however, then the nonpayment of the… Read more »
Gurstel Law Firm Is Suing Me, What Can I Do?
Gurstel Law Firm is a Debt Collections Law firm located in Golden Valley, MN. They often sue Minnesotans for unpaid debts from things like credit cards or medical bills. A lawsuit in Minnesota starts with a Summons and Complaint. This is a legal document that is supposed to be served (handed to) the Defendant or… Read more »
Can I Be Sued While Working With A Debt Settlement Agency?
The short answer is YES, you can be sued even if you have a debt settlement or debt consolidation agency working for you. In Minnesota, debt settlement or debt consolidation agencies are not usually lawyers. They promise to fix debt problems, but they often can’t do it quickly enough to stop a lawsuit against you. … Read more »
I Have A House in Minnesota, How Can I Be Sure It’s Protected In Bankruptcy?
Minnesota Law Protects Homes From Most Debts Minnesota began as a frontier state and has a long tradition of protecting the property of Minnesotans from Debt Collections. The Minnesota Constitution says: Sec. 12. property exemption. No person shall be imprisoned for debt in this state, but this shall not prevent the legislature from providing for… Read more »
New York Bankruptcy Court Allows Discharge of Some Private Student Loans
Is the trend changing for whether student loans can be discharged in bankruptcy? One court in New York is willing to go against the grain and rule for the student loan borrower. This court found that the borrower’s specific type of loan did not count as a student loan. Read the opinion here. There are… Read more »
Is the Child Tax Credit Protected in Bankruptcy?
WHAT IS THE 2021 CHILD TAX CREDIT? Minnesota parents should soon receive their first payments from the child tax credit. Congress and the Biden administration voted in March, 2021 to give parents under a certain income threshold up to $3,600 to help raise their children. If you want to know how much you will get… Read more »
Peacetime State of Emergency Ends Tomorrow
Things you should know: The Peacetime Emergency in the United States was protecting people during the pandemic from creditors. Things like garnishments, bank levies, account freezes were all stopped during that Emergency Order. Now that it is ending, creditors are going to be looking to start garnishing immediately. What are creditors doing now? Creditors are… Read more »
Bankruptcy Works On Cell Phone Debt in Minnesota
ARE DEBTS FOR CELL PHONES DISCHARGEABLE IN BANKRUPTCY? When going over credit reports of Minnesotans looking for debt relief, I almost always find an entry for Sprint, or Verizon, or T-Mobile, or other cell phone companies. Just like credit cards and medical bills, debts to cell phone companies in Minnesota are completely discharged in bankruptcy…. Read more »
Does My Bankruptcy Go in the Star Tribune?
THE VAST MAJORITY OF BANKRUPTCIES DO NOT GO IN THE STAR TRIBUNE People often ask me if their bankruptcy filings will go in the newspaper in Minnesota. The short answer is that the Star Tribune only publishes business bankruptcies. Right now, about 40-60 people per day file bankruptcy, so it would take lots of space… Read more »
!Garnishments are Back!
Earlier this week, the governor’s orders preventing wage garnishments and bank levies started to expire. There are still some limitations in place, but as far as creditors are concerned, they can start taking your money NOW! Garnishments are awful. No one wants to wake up one day to find their bank accounts empty or be… Read more »
