Philadelphia Bankruptcy Client Case Studies

23 Bankruptcy Client Case Studies where Bankruptcy Helped Individuals and Families to Get a Better Life

Read our Real Bankruptcy Client Case Studies to see how we have helped people that have been in your particular situation or a similar situation. We have examples showing how we deal with credit card debt, personal loans, stop car repossession, wipe out judgments, and other situations. In many cases, we have been able to substantially lower the amount paid to the banks and credit card companies, reduce the interest on the car payments, get additional time and/or reduce the amount which has to be paid on monies owed to the I.R.S. for taxes, lowered the interest rate or completely eliminated interest on the debt, stopped foreclosures on a home, gotten up to 5 years to catch up on mortgages or real estate taxes and thereby prevented foreclosure and in some cases reduced the monthly mortgage payment.
We have been able to help people keep a car or walk away from a very expensive car payment which they no longer wanted and could not afford, get rid of an expensive and unwanted timeshare which they no longer wanted, and make no more payments on the mortgage on the rental home, and make no more payments on the timeshare.

Credit Card Debt and Loan Debt Too High

A common Bankruptcy client case study involves credit card and loan debt. We had a woman who owed over $50,000 in credit card and collection agency debt. The plan of reorganization reduced her monthly payments to $280 per month for 36 months with the remaining balance being wiped out.
We had a person with little income who had a gambling problem and over $150,000 in credit card debt. The whole credit card debt was wiped out and the person got a fresh start.
We had a single woman with over $20,000 in loans and credit card debt. By filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, we were to completely wipe out all of her bills.
We had a person with over $160,000 in credit card debt and loan debts and monthly payments of over $1,800 per month. We were able to have a Chapter 13 plan approved which lowered those payments to $595 per month for 36 months. After 36 months any balance owing was discharged and never repaid.

Stopping Home Mortgage Foreclosure

A man came in who was $25,000 in arrears on the mortgage and owed thousands of dollars on other debts. We were able to provide for virtually no payments on the other debt and put him on a monthly Chapter 13 payment plan of $520 plus the regular mortgage payment.
We had a person whose home was scheduled for Sheriff Sale and who was over $17,000 in arrears on the mortgage. We were able to stop the Sheriff Sale, stop the home foreclosure, and spread out the $17,000 which was in arrears, to be paid over 5 years. The person continues to pay the regular mortgage to the mortgage company, plus a little more than $400 per month to the Chapter 13 Trustee.
We had a family who had two mortgages on their home. We were able to get them 5 years to pay back the arrears on the first mortgage. The news for the second mortgage was even better. We were able to completely wipe out the second mortgage since there was no equity in the property for the second mortgage.
We were able to get the mortgage company to issue a new mortgage at a reduced rate for a person who was over $50,000 in arrears on the mortgage. The car payments were also reduced. The credit card bills are being paid virtually nothing.

Stopping Car Repossession

A person came in whose car was repossessed. We were able to get the car back, lower the payments and pay back the balance over a longer period of time. Bankruptcy stops auto repossession.
We had a woman who was facing auto repossession. Her car payments were over $600 per month. In addition, the interest on the auto loan was over 18.00%. Not only were we able to lower the interest rate on the loan, but we were also able to substantially reduce her monthly car payments as well.
A couple came in who were in arrears on three cars. We were able to reduce the amount owed on the first car and also lower the interest rate. The second car we paid the arrears inside the Chapter 13 plan and the couple continued to make the regular car payments. The third car was surrendered and no money had to be repaid on the debt owed on the third car.

Wipe Out Judgments

We had a person with a $20,000 judgment against him whose driver’s license had been suspended for being involved in an auto accident and not having any auto insurance. We were able to get the auto accident judgment wiped out and discharged by the bankruptcy. The person’s driver’s license was then able to be reinstated.
An individual came to our office with several judgments against him totaling over $50,000. Chapter 7 Bankruptcy was able to wipe out all of the judgments and the person was able to get a completely fresh start.
A woman who had a couple of judgments against her as well as several pending lawsuits came into our office for help. By filing the Bankruptcy we were able to wipe out the judgments against her, put a stop on the lawsuits and clear a number of other debts as well.

Delinquent I.R.S. Taxes and Real Estate Taxes

We had a man with an I.R.S. problem in which he owed the I.R.S. over $55,000 in delinquent taxes. We were able to reduce his payment from over $1200 per month to $750 per month for 36 months. At the end of the 36 months, the remaining balance owed to the I.R.S. is wiped out.
A couple came to our office with over $125,000 in taxes owed to I.R.S., the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the City of Philadelphia. We were able to reduce the tax debts and save them over $100,000 and get the reduced tax debts paid back over a period of five years after which no tax debts were owed.
A lady came into our office whose home was going to be sold for delinquent real estate taxes owed on the home. We were able to stop the tax sale of the home and get the person 5 years to pay back the real estate taxes. The utility bills were reset to zero and no money had to be repaid on the other debts that the couple owed.

Other Debt Situations, Timeshares, and Rental Homes

We had a person behind on the mortgage, the car payments, the credit cards, and the utility bills. We were able to stop any foreclosure on the home, any repossession of the car, get the utility bills to reset to 0, allow the current payments to resume and get 5 years to pay back the mortgage arrears and automobile arrears, with the credit cards and bank loans and utility bills only being paid back pennies on the dollar.
There was a couple with a timeshare. They had other debts and were very upset they had bought the timeshare. We were able to wipe out all of their debts and get them to give back the timeshare with no repayments on any of the bills. All the debts were completely wiped out.
We had a couple who walked into our office who owned three homes. They were behind on the first mortgage and wanted to stop mortgage foreclosure on their home. They did not want to keep the other two homes. Our office was able to save their home and give them 5 years to get caught up on their mortgage. They were also able to give back both of the rental homes to the mortgage company without having to repay any money owed on the rental homes.

Previous Bankruptcy Filing

There was a couple with a previous Chapter 13 Bankruptcy case. We were able to file a new Chapter 13 cases, help them repay only a small amount of what was owed, and get the second case to work out even though the first case did not.
We had a woman who was trying to stop the home mortgage foreclosure. She had a prior Chapter 13 which was dismissed. We were able to file a new Chapter 13 case for her and get her five years to get caught up on the mortgage payments which she had not been able to pay.
A couple came to us which had a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. The case was discharged four years ago. We were able to file a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy case and help the family with their debts even though they had a previous Chapter 7 case./ The mere fact that you filed Bankruptcy before does not mean that you are not allowed to file again.

These cases are real Bankruptcy client case studies that we have actually had in our office. Bankruptcy is able to help many many types of financial situations. We have many more Bankruptcy client cases examples of cases in which we have been able to help individuals get a fresh start and enjoy life again. To find out how Bankruptcy can help your situation call the Law Offices of David M. Offen at 215-625-9600 to discuss your situation with an experienced bankruptcy lawyer in Philadelphia.

Information Center