The First Thing You Need to Know Is Whether You Qualify
Video Transcribed: Oklahoma Bankruptcy Attorney Edward Kelley here, answering your Oklahoma city bankruptcy questions with oklahomacitybankruptcyattorney.pro. Today, we’re going to talk about what should you make sure your lawyer knows? And what should you ask your lawyer before you file for bankruptcy?
Well, first thing is whether you qualify. Know this before going in. For one person, upper forties, 40,000 a year in Oklahoma, add about 10,000 onto that for each additional family member. Have an idea before you go in, but does your income qualify you? How many is in your household?
Make sure your lawyer finds out who all earns in the household. I’ve had many cases where people don’t understand that a non-filing spouse’s income has to be considered, or whether somebody needs to be paid rent, or somebody has a roommate that it doesn’t need to be considered. So that’s a big question to ask.
Also, be sure you tell them about every one of your assets. You’ve got to be honest. You’re violating federal law if you’re not. So be sure you tell your attorney every single thing that you have. Do you have a camper? Do you have a jet ski? Do you have a timeshare? Do you have stocks, bonds? If you fail to mention these things, then you certainly stand to lose them.
Now, in many cases, there’s things you can do prior to bankruptcy, legitimately, to deal with that. But make sure in your initial consult, you divulge everything you have, and hopefully your lawyer will ask you that anyway. Also, make sure that you understand which debts are dischargeable and which aren’t. If you’ve got student loans, make sure your attorney knows that. If you’ve got tax debt less than three years old, make sure that they understand that.
In short, tell your attorney absolutely everything about your financial picture, but be sure that you have included every bit of income, every asset, and also every creditor. Be sure if there’s debts that you want to reaffirm, that you ask your attorney about that and stay on him or her and make sure that they follow through with that. So, these are the keys to a successful bankruptcy and a good relationship with your Oklahoma City Bankruptcy attorney.