Bankruptcy

While bankruptcy isn’t always the first option for individuals with tax debt – it can be the best option. In the right circumstance, bankruptcy allows a taxpayer to not only eliminate their tax debt, but also other unsecured debt such as credit cards, personal loans, past due utility bills, and medical debt. Bankruptcy can even help you restructure a car loan or help you catch up on late mortgage payments.

The “b word” sounds scary to people. It shouldn’t. It’s a financial tool and a constitutional right. While we can often use certain techniques like penalty abatement to reduce or eliminate your penalties, ordinarily, you will still be left with something to repay. Bankruptcy can potentially eliminate all of your tax debt leaving you with no repayment plan at all.

Depending on the type of bankruptcy you have filed, and your individual situation, bankruptcy may wipe out (discharge) the debts you owe, or allow you to file a plan with bankruptcy court proposing how you will repay (or partially repay) your creditors.

There are several benefits of filing for bankruptcy:

  1. In most cases, you keep all your property including your house, car, retirement, and your household goods and furnishings;
  2. Stops creditor harassment;
  3. Stops paycheck garnishments from the IRS;
  4. Stops bank account levies;
  5. Stops most civil lawsuits immediately;
  6. Rebuilds your credit. (Yes! Contrary to popular belief, filing for bankruptcy can actually help you reestablish your ability to borrow money!)

Consumer Bankruptcy

Consumer bankruptcy is available for individuals and married couples. Consumers can file bankruptcy under Chapter 7, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, and Chapter 13. Each Chapter has its own qualifications as well as its own advantages/disadvantages. Only an experienced bankruptcy attorney can advise you as to which Chapter, if any, is right for you.

Business Bankruptcy

Even businesses can file a bankruptcy petition. Partnerships, Corporations, and Limited Liability Companies can all file a business bankruptcy. Most often, businesses can file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition. A Chapter 7 would be used in a situation in which the business was either closing or already closed. A Chapter 11 can be used to not only keep the business alive, but restructure its debts – including tax debts. If your business has debt other than tax debt, this may be a powerful tool.

Can I keep my house and my car in bankruptcy?

Many people who are thinking about filing bankruptcy are concerned about whether they will be able to keep their home and car after filing bankruptcy. Most of the time, as long as you continue to make payments and continue making the insurance payments, you most likely have the option of keeping your home or vehicle. Unless you are surrendering the house or car, just filing either a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Bankruptcy will not cause you to lose it. A bankruptcy attorney can discuss your particular case with you.

What does bankruptcy do to my credit?

One of the most common questions regarding bankruptcy is “what does it do to my credit?” More often than not, bankruptcy debtors report an INCREASE in their credit score after filing for bankruptcy. How can this be possible? For starters, most people who file for bankruptcy already have a low credit score. Most people consider filing for bankruptcy after already missing payments or maxing out credit cards. These are two heavily weighted factors in credit scores. After a bankruptcy, these debts are discharged and your credit score improves.

Moreover, at Best Tax Solutions, we don’t simply file bankruptcy. We help you rebuild your credit score. So how do we do it? We’ve partnered with 720creditscore.com to provide “7 Steps to a 720 Credit Score” to all of our clients FOR FREE. That’s right. At no additional cost, all of our clients are enrolled in this 14-week program ($1,000 value). In this program, you will learn how to rebuild your credit the right way. You will also learn:

  • Why most credit scores are wrong;
  • Which credit cards actually hurt your credit score;
  • How to stop lenders that report the wrong information;
  • How to re-establish your credit after a bankruptcy foreclosure, or short sale.

$0 Down Bankruptcy

At Best Tax Solutions, we understand that filing for bankruptcy can be stressful. Many people want their cases filed immediately to stop garnishments, repossessions and collector calls, but can’t easily come up with the full fee in advance. While most attorneys want to help, most will not file a petition unless they are paid in full.

Trying to put together several thousand dollars for an attorney fee may take months to years for someone who is trying to file a bankruptcy. Sometimes our clients cannot wait that long. Sometimes our clients need relief NOW. That’s why we try to maintain several funding options for our clients. We offer true $0 down options, low money down options, and third party payor options (all upon qualification).

How do I know if my taxes are dischargeable in bankruptcy?

The rules for determining whether taxes are dischargeable are complex and can be confusing. Many bankruptcy attorneys don’t even fully understand the rules. We are not most bankruptcy attorneys. We are tax resolution attorneys. We not only can assist you in filing bankruptcy, but we can confidently tell you whether your tax debts are dischargeable. Not only that, but we can provide you with a detailed report regarding bankruptcy dischargeability during our initial tax account transcript review.

Need more information?

Interested in learning more? Simply contact us and we can provide you with more information!

We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.