hesskennedylawfirm: HESS KENNEDY LAW FIRM - Hess Kennedy Company Debt Settlement

hesskennedylawfirm | August 31, 2007 | 10:30 AM

HESS KENNEDY LAW FIRM - Hess Kennedy Company Debt Settlement

Hess Kennedy Company - Hess Kennedy Law Firm says if you are having debt problems, you may fee overwhelmed and powerless. During periods of financial hardship, you may not have the resources to pay pressing debts, to meet family needs, and to get legal help. You may feel helpless to fight debt collectors pressing you for payment or threatening to seize your home, car, or other possessions.

We will help you make the best choices possible despite difficult financial circumstances. Hess Kennedy Company - Hess Kennedy Law Firm will help you decide whether there are debts you can ignore and what your options are when you cannot ignore a particular debt. Most important, we will make sure that your rights as a consumer are protected. Many state and federal laws are designed to help people facing financial problems.

Most people in financial distress will first want to deal with the worst symptoms of a deteriorating financial situation. However, you should never make a decision based upon what a debt collector tells you. If you have an issue, have the debt collector call your attorney three-way to confirm what they have just said. Or, tell the debt collector that you need to call your attorney first, or better yet, ask the debt collector to contact us directly.

When your financial condition is such that you cannot meet your monthly payment requirements, we are here to develop a long-term strategy to deal with your debt problems. This strategy involves figuring out those debts that you need to repay, and understanding the likely consequences if you cannot pay certain debts.

The first discipline that you need to learn is keeping a log of your income and expenses for a few months. You should have already submitted an income statement worksheet to the lawyer referral firm that referred you to our law firm. Hess Kennedy Company - Hess Kennedy Law Firm will make sure that we have this.

The second discipline is determining the priority of your debt. Debts with collateral are top priority. These include mortgages, rent, car loans, and loans secured by household goods. Debts without collateral are low priority debts. These include credit cards, charge cards, medical bills, gasoline cards, payday loans, and loans from family or friends.

The third discipline involves identifying those debts that should be paid first.
Always pay family necessities. This means food and unavoidable medical expenses.

Next pay your housing related bills. Pay your mortgage or rent if at all possible. If you own a home, pay your non-deferrable real estate taxes and your insurance unless they are included in the monthly payment. Failure to pay these bills can result in the loss of your home or apartment. If you are having a serious problem that requires you to move, you might stop paying the mortgage or rent. When you do so, do not spend this money. Hess Kennedy Company - Hess Kennedy Law Firm says save this money as a fund to use when you move, and to put down any required down payment.

Pay the minimum required to keep your essential utility service. You should pay the minimum payment necessary to avoid disconnection. It would not make sense to work hard to keep your house or apartment only to not be able to live there because of no utility service.

Pay car loans or car leases if you need to keep your car. If you need your car to get to work or for other essential transportation you should make your car payment your next priority after food, housing costs, and utilities. You may want to pay for the car first if the car is necessary to keep your job.

You must pay your child support debts. A child support debt will not go away. If you need to modify a final order of child support obligation, then do it. You will have to prove that your financial condition has dramatically changed, and some states have minimum thresholds. However, if you do not make these payments, you can lose your license and go to jail.

Income tax debts are a high priority. You must pay income taxes you owe that are not automatically deducted from your wages. You must pay file your federal income tax returns, even if you do not have the money to pay the tax liability. The government has powerful collection rights that other creditors do not have, particularly if you do not file your returns. If your income has been reduced due to a change in circumstances, you can have your tax liability reduced.

Loans without collateral are low priority. Most credit card debts, doctor and hospital bills, and other debts, such as open accounts with merchants, and similar debts are low priority. You have not secured any property with these debts, and in the short term, creditors cannot hurt you.

Do not move a debt up in priority because a creditor or debt collector threatens to sue you. Many threats to sue are not carried out. Even if the creditor does sue, it will take a while before the collector can seize any property, and much of your property may be exempt from seizure.

Court judgments against you move a debt up in priority, but less than you think. After a collector obtains a court judgment, that debt is often higher priority because the creditor can now ask a court to seize certain pieces of property, wages, and bank accounts. However, as to whether or not it is a serious threat will depend upon your state's law, the value of the property, and your income.

Debt collection efforts should never move up a debt's priority. Be polite to the debt collector, but make your own choices. Debt collectors are unlikely to give you good advice. Debt collectors may be most aggressive when trying to get you to pay debts that should be paid last, if at all. You should never listen to what a debt collector says until you have had time to contact your lawyer or paralegal.

Threats to ruin your credit record should never move up a debt's priority. Many collectors that threaten to report your delinquency to a credit bureau have already done so. If the creditor has not yet reported the status of your account to a credit bureau, it is unlikely that a collector hired by that creditor will do so.

Refinancing is rarely the answer. You should always be careful about refinancing. It can be very expensive and it can give creditors more opportunities to seize your important assets.

You have retained this law firm because you can no longer afford the required payments to your creditors each month. The objective is to achieve a settlement on the balances owed to your creditors. Although in our experience, creditors accept settlement offers, we must disclose that there are inherent risks with not making payments to your creditors. Some of these risks include: late fees, penalties, and interest will continue to accrue on the consumers debt until the creditors accept and receive a settlement; (2) a creditor(s) may still sue to collect on the debts and garnish your wages; (3) interest rates applicable to the debt may increase; (4) any money saved in negotiating a settlement with a creditor must be treated as income for tax purposes; and (5) a debt settled for less than the full amount owed may result in a negative notation on your credit report. Hess Kennedy Company - Hess Kennedy Law Firm

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HESS KENNEDY LAW FIRM - Hess Kennedy Company Debt Settlement

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