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Bankruptcy FAQ

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Cost to File Bankruptcy in New Jersey

Cost To File Bankruptcy In New Jersey

Our Fees Are Affordable AND We Offer Payment Plans Customized To YOUR Budget!

How much does it cost to file bankruptcy in New Jersey is a question most people want to know the answer to right away.

 Chapter 7 Bankruptcy in New Jersey

For most people, Chapter 7 Bankruptcy is the quickest, easiest, and most cost-effective choice. If you don’t own a home and don’t have too much income, Chapter 7 may be right for you. There is a range of fees, and payment plans are available as well. Click here to see our latest payment plans.

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy in New Jersey

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is a re-payment plan or re-organization of your debts.  If you have  above-average income or equity in a home, Chapter 13 may be right for you.  Chapter 13 Bankruptcy cases are more complex than typical Chapter 7 Bankruptcy cases therefore the fees are little more costly.  BUT, a portion of the fees can be paid over 60 months making a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy case very affordable. 

Payment Plans Make Chapter 13 Bankruptcies Easier

Most people who need to file for bankruptcy don’t have the money it takes to pay the fees and costs associated with filing. Payment plans are usually the answer. We do convenient monthly and bi-weekly payment plans, that fit your budget,  to make paying for bankruptcy a little easier.  Click here to see our latest payment plans.

 

Court Costs

In addition to attorney’s fees for filing your case, there are Court costs typically around $325 which are due on filing.  In some cases, if you apply and the Court agrees, you may be able to pay the Court cost in four payments or even get the fee waived.  Click here to see our latest payment plans.

No Hidden Fees.

Be sure to ask when comparing payment plans between lawyers: do they charge extra for services that should be included in an average bankruptcy case such as appearing on your behalf at the 341 hearing,

Credit Rebuilding Advice.

Does your lawyer show you how to rebuild your credit after filing bankruptcy?  Its a service that all lawyers should offer, and, of course, we do.  Ask us about it.

How Do I Come Up With The Money To Pay For The Cost To File Bankruptcy In New Jersey?

Stop Paying Your Credit Cards.

The Cost To FIle Bankruptcy In New Jersey can be daunting. Many people can stop paying their credit cards once they have made the decision to file bankruptcy.  This often frees-up enough money to make payments for the attorney fee and  Court costs.  Other people have to rely on friends or family to give them the money.  Still others wait until they receive their tax refund as a way to fund the cost.

Use Your Tax Refund.

Use your tax refund to fund the cost to file bankruptcy in New Jersey. The research submitted to the National Bureau of Economic Research, conducted by a group of professors from Columbia University, the University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis, examined how bankruptcy filings spiked after people received their tax rebates in previous years.They estimate that another 200,000 consumers, who would otherwise not have enough money to file, will use their tax refunds to pay for bankruptcy this year.

Payment Plans

Check out our payment plans by clicking the box below.  Bankruptcy hits at the least opportune times – usually when you don’t have the money to pay the legal fee and maybe when a wage garnishment, car repo, or sheriff sale is imminent.  Payment plans are the answer.  Click here to see our latest payment plans.

 

Cost To File Bankrupcty Button

 

Our office is conveniently located to serve all of Somerset County, Warren County, Passaic County, Hunterdon County, Union County, Morris County, and Middlesex County.

Cost to File Bankruptcy in Essex County New Jersey: Belleville, Bloomfield, Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Orange, East Orange, Fairfield, Glen Ridge, Irvington, Livingston, Maplewood, Millburn, Short Hills, Montclair, Nutley, Roseland, South Orange, Verona, West Caldwell, West Orange.

 Cost To File Bankruptcy in Hudson County New Jersey: Bayonne, Jersey City, Hoboken, Union City, West New York, Guttenberg, Secaucus, Kearny, Harrison, North Bergen, Weehawken
Cost To File Bankruptcy in Passaic County New Jersey: Clifton, Haledon, Hawthorne, Little Falls, Singac, North Haledon, Passaic, Paterson, Pompton Lakes, Prospect Park, Ringwood, Totowa, Wanaque, Wayne, West Milford, Hewitt, Newfoundland, Oak Ridge, Woodland Park
Cost To File Bankruptcy in Bergen County New Jersey: Allendale, Alpine, Bergenfield, Bogota, Carlstadt, Cliffside Park, Closter, Cresskill, Demarest, Dumont, East Rutherford, Edgewater, Elmwood Park, Emerson, Englewood, Englewood Cliffs, Fair Lawn, Fairview, Fort Lee, Franklin Lakes, Garfield, Glen Rock, Hackensack, Harrington Park, Hasbrouck Heights, Haworth, Hillsdale, Ho-Ho-Kus, Leonia, Little Ferry, Lodi, Lyndhurst, Mahwah, Maywood, Midland Park, Montvale, Moonachie, New Milford, North Arlington, Northvale, Norwood, Oakland, Old Tappan, Oradell, Palisades Park, Paramus, Park Ridge, Ramsey, Ridgefield, Ridgefield Park, Ridgewood, River Edge, River Vale, Rochelle Park, Rockleigh, Rutherford, Saddle Brook, Saddle River, South Hackensack, Teaneck, Tenafly, Teterboro, Upper Saddle River, Waldwick, Wallington, Washington Township, Westwood, Wood-Ridge, Woodcliff Lake, Wyckoff
Cost To File Bankruptcy in Union County New Jersey:  Fanwood, Garwood, Kenilworth, Mountainside, New Providence, Roselle Park, Roselle, Elizabeth, Linden, Plainfield, Rahway, Summit, Westfield, Berkeley Heights, Clark, Cranford, Hillside, Scotch Plains, Springfield Township, Union Township, Winfield Township
Cost To File Bankruptcy in Middlesex County New Jersey: Carteret, Cranbury, Dunellen, East Brunswick, Edison, Helmetta, Highland Park, Jamesburg, Metuchen, Middlesex, Milltown, Monroe, Clearbrook Park, Concordia, Rossmoor, Whittingham, New Brunswick, North Brunswick, Old Bridge, Brownville, Laurence Harbor, Madison Park, Old Bridge, Perth Amboy, Piscataway, Society Hill, Plainsboro Township, Plainsboro Center, Princeton Meadows, Sayreville, Parlin, South Amboy, South Brunswick, Dayton, Deans, Heathcote, Kendall Park, Kingston, Monmouth Junction, South Plainfield, South River, Spotswood, Avenel, Colonia, Fords, Hopelawn, Iselin, Keasbey, Menlo Park Terrace, Port Reading, Sewaren, Woodbridge

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Medical Expenses Is Still The Number One Reason Why People File Bankruptcy

After a year-upon-year tally of the many bankruptcy cases I do each year, I have found that the number one reason why people file bankruptcy is still medical expenses.

Having extraordinary medical expenses is still the number one reason why people file bankruptcy my research shows.

A 2005 study by Harvard University showed then that 62% of bankruptcy filers filed bankruptcy due to their inability to pay enormous medical expenses after a significant illness or injury.  My own records show this still to be true.

Cancer Takes A Financial Toll.

Of the most financially devastating diseases, cancer reigns supreme. The American Cancer Society estimates that the 2010 total cost of cancer in the U.S. rose to $263.8 billion. So perhaps unsurprisingly, a new study by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center shows a close link between cancer diagnosis and personal bankruptcy. Compared to the general population, bankruptcy rates are nearly twice as high among cancer patients one year after diagnosis.  Of the bankruptcies caused by a cancer, a surprising 78% reported having some form of health insurance.

Many Are Covered By Health Insurance.

Overall, three-quarters of the people with a medically-related bankruptcy had health insurance.

I found a very high percentage of people who filed had health insurance, but many of them were bankrupted anyway because there were gaps in their coverage like co-payments and deductibles and uncovered services.  Other people had private insurance but got so sick that they lost their job and lost their insurance.

Many middle-class Americans feel insulated from these growing costs by medical insurance, but often when serious medical problems arise, that safety net either disappears or proves to be full of holes.

For Most, Health Insurance Is Employer Based.

For most, medical insurance is employer-sponsored. That means the insurance can disappear when illness or injury makes working impossible.

Although COBRA laws allow the employee to extend the insurance coverage by assuming payments, that solution falls short for many. COBRA can be very expensive and coverage is limited in duration, so an illness or injury that prevents work in the long-term will ultimately outlast those benefits.

Even people with active medical insurance coverage often end up with large bills as co-payments, non-covered services and other out-of-pocket expenses mount.

Although many policies include “catastrophic” provisions that limit out-of-pocket expenses, the cut-offs are often so high that policyholders are bankrupted by the medical expenses that fall in the gap.

These radically mounting medical bills haven’t been absorbed easily by the average American family.

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Top 5 Reasons People File Bankruptcy

There many reasons people file bankruptcy.  Here are the Top 5 reasons people file bankruptcy.

1. Medical Expenses.

One of the biggest reasons people file bankruptcy is for medical expenses. A study done a few years ago at Harvard University indicates that this is the biggest cause of bankruptcy, representing 62% of all personal bankruptcies. It is interesting to note the study shows that 78% of filers had some form of health insurance.

Rare or serious diseases or injuries can easily result in hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills – bills that can quickly wipe out savings and retirement accounts, college education funds and home equity. Once these have been exhausted, bankruptcy may be the only shelter left, regardless of whether the patient or his or her family was able to apply health coverage to a portion of the bill or not.

2. Job Loss.

Another very significant reason people file bankruptcy is due to job loss.  Whether due to layoff, termination or resignation, the loss of income from a job can be devastating. Some are lucky enough to receive severance packages, but many find pink slips on their desks or lockers with little or no prior notice. Not having an emergency fund to draw from only worsens this situation, and using credit cards to pay bills can be disastrous. This isn’t just something for the low-wage worker.  A middle class family with a $3000 p/mn mortgage, two car payments of $300 each along with all of the regular day-to-day expenses won’t last long without a steady income – even with some savings.  Bankruptcy can put debts on ice giving you time to find a job and keep your family from having to live on the street.

The loss of insurance coverage and the cost of COBRA insurance also drain the job seeker’s already limited resources. Those who are unable to find similar gainful employment for an extended period of time may not be able to recover from the lack of income in time to keep the creditors at bay.

3. Mismanagement of Credit.

A third reason people file bankruptcy is due to mismanagement of credit.  Some people simply can’t control their spending. But credit card companies make it worse by giving easy credit and increasing limits when they see heavy use.  Credit card bills, installment debt, car and other loan payments can eventually spiral out of control, until finally the borrower is unable to make even the minimum payment on each type of debt. And, even if the borrower made the minimum payments, at the high interest rates credit card companies charge, once the balance gets high, the minimum payments don’t even cover the monthly interest digging the borrower deep into a hole. If the borrower cannot access funds from friends or family or otherwise obtain a debt-consolidation loan, then bankruptcy is usually the inevitable alternative.

Debt-consolidation and home equity loans make it worse.

Statistics indicate that most debt-consolidation plans fail for various reasons, and usually only delay filing for most participants. Home-equity loans make things worse by turning unsecured debt into secure debt putting your home at risk of foreclosure on their homes if they are unable to make this payment as well.

Borrowing from 401k and pensions is wrong.

Some people, in an effort to “do the right thing” and pay debts, resort to raiding thee own retirement accounts.  DO NOT. Many people are unaware that funds in retirement savings are protected in bankruptcy allowing you to get rid of the bad debts but keep your hard-earned retirement savings that you will not be able to replace.

4. Divorce or Separation.

Another reason people file bankruptcy is after divorce or separation. Marital dissolutions create tremendous financial strain on both partners in several ways. First come the legal fees, which can be astronomical in some cases, followed by a division of marital assets, decree of child support and/or alimony, and finally the ongoing cost of keeping up two separate households after the split. The legal costs alone are enough to force some to file, while wage garnishments to cover back child support or alimony can strip others of the ability to pay the rest of their bills. Spouses who fail to pay the support dictated in the agreement often leave the other completely destitute.

5. Unexpected Expenses.

Loss of property due to theft or casualty, such as earthquakes, floods or tornadoes for which the owner is not insured can force some into bankruptcy. Many homeowners are likely unaware that they must take out separate coverage for certain events such as earthquakes. Those who do not have coverage for this type of peril can face the loss of not only their homes but most or all of their possessions as well. Not only must they then pay to replace these items, but they must also find immediate food and shelter in the meantime. Furthermore, those who lose their wardrobes in such a catastrophe may not be able to dress appropriately for their work, which could cost them their jobs.

If you have debts that are out of control, don’t do anything until you understand all there is to know about bankruptcy.  It is a federal law that is designed to help you.  It is not wrong to file bankruptcy.

 

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Famous People Who Filed Bankruptcy

Famous People Who Filed Bankruptcy.

There have been many famous people who filed bankruptcy.  Sometimes they do it because they got themselves into financial difficulty, other times they do it simply as a strategic business move.  Either way, if they can do it, so can you.

Take a look at the list: you may very well be surprised at the names here.  Some, like Mike Tyson, perhaps not.  Others like Abraham Lincoln, Donal Trump, Walt Disney?

 

CELEBRITIES WHO FILED BANKRUPTCY

1. Burt Reynolds – chapter 11 in 1996 after owing more than 8 million in debts
2. Lorraine Bracco – filed after long custody battle
3. Mickey Rooney – 1986 filing – first bankruptcy was in 1962
4. Kim Basinger – filed due to $8 million judgment after backing out of a movie
5. Jerry Lewis – filed in the 70’s after losing stage bookings
6. Gary Coleman – 1999 bankruptcy
7. Redd Foxx –chapter 11 after owing millions to IRS
8. Mike Tyson – filed after blowing $300 million foolishly
9. Morton Downey, Jr. – filed 5 bankruptcies
10. Larry King – filed in 1971 and again in 1978
11. Gloria Vanderbilt – 1938 bankruptcy
12. John Wayne
13. Toni Braxton – filed in 1998
14. Francis Ford Coppola – filed in 1999
15. David Crosby – filed in 1985
16. Mick Fleetwood – filed in 1984
17. Dorothy Hamill – filed in 1996
18. Marvin Gaye – filed in the 70’s
19. M. C. Hammer – filed in 1996
20. Merle Haggard – filed in 1993
21. Chaka Kahn
22. Jackie Mason – filed in 1983 after bad investments
23. Ted Nugent
24. Tom Petty – filed in 1979
25. Debbie Rooney – filed in 1962
26. Anna Nicole Smith
27. Cindy Lauper – filed in 1981
28. Latoya Jackson – filed in 1995
29. Wayne Newton – filed in 1992

 

FAMOUS PEOPLE WHO FILED BANKRUPTCY

1. Walt Disney – filed after a company owing him money filed bankruptcy
2. Henry Ford – Founder of Ford Motor Company
3. William Durant – Founder of General Motors
4. Larry King – filed in 1971 and 1978
5. Donald Trump – filed several bankruptcies
6. P. T. Barnum – Founder of Barnum & Bailey Circus
7. H.J. Heinz – Founder of the H.J. Heinz Ketchup Company
8. Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) – filed in 1894 due to failed investments
9. Oscar Wilde – acclaimed poet and author
10. William Fox – Founder of 20th Century Fox Film Corporation.

 

POLITICIANS WHO FILED BANKRUPTCY

1.   Abraham Lincoln – filed several times, due to business failures
2.   Thomas Jefferson – filed several times, including after leaving office due to large debt
3.   Ulysses S. Grant – 18th US President – filed in 1884 after leaving office
4.   Daniel Webster – US Secretary of State – 1841
5.   George McGovern – US Senator – filed in 1991 after his inn went out of business
6.   John Connally – former Texas Governor and Treasury Secretary – filed Chapter 11 in 1987
7.   William McKinley – 25th US President
8.   J. Fife Symington – Governor of Arizona – filed in 1995 while still in office

 

Do you know other famous people who filed for bankruptcy?  Put them in the comments.

 

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Bankruptcy Attorney | Somerville | Foreclosure Lawyer | NJ

Bankruptcy Attorney

Bankruptcy Attorney Todd Murphy tells how bankruptcy can help.

Bankruptcy can help if you are being harassed by bill collectors on the phone, at home or at work, or if you are receiving threatening letters in the mail.  There is no need to put with this type of disrespect from a bill collector.  I’m sure you would like to pay them but you simply cannot.  And, don’t feel bad about it.  They don’t feel badly about harassing and threatening you day and night or charging you outrageous interest rates or penalties.

If you have payday loans, you really know how aggressive a bill collector can be.  They are relentless.  it starts off innocently enough on your part, you need a an advance to make a payment but then something comes up and you can’t pay back the payday loan.  Then – wham, the interest goes to 30% and they overdraw your bank account.

Don’t feel bad about bankruptcy.  It might be the right thing to do for you!

Somerville

Todd Murphy‘s office in Bedminster, NJ is close to Somerville, the county seat of Somerset County.  Contact him here or by calling him directly at 862-217-2361.

Foreclosure Lawyer

Foreclosure notification is a frequent result of financial difficulty. There are many ways to address a foreclosure notification, depending on how deep in arrears you are or the status of your income and employment. The most desirable path forward is to obtain a loan modification through negotiation with your creditors and mortgage holder. If you’re unable to qualify, or the bank gives you the runaround, then getting a modification through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy filing may offer you the solution you need, enabling to stay in your home, erase some debt, and pay off others through a court-supervised payment plan. Call us for a consultation to find the best option for your foreclosure situation.