I took a client through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, and got her a discharge. She and I were done, and she had no more personal debt. Then she sought a loan modification Read more >>
September 24, 2014
Wells Fargo: Paid ME for Their Incompetence
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Wells Fargo: Freezes Accounts of People in Bankruptcy
If you have more than $5,000 in your Wells Fargo checking account when you file a bankruptcy petition, be prepared. Wells Fargo will freeze your account until the bankruptcy trustee tells them it’s okay Read more >>
September 23, 2014
Wells Fargo: Worst Bank EVER
I don’t like Wells Fargo Bank. Its abusive policies make it impossible to think well of it. I try not to do loan modifications for clients because all banks are reluctant to negotiate them. Banks are forced to do so by well-meaning statutes. Read more >>
September 22, 2014
To the IRS, Every Tax Period Stands on Its Own
I received a call recently from someone already represented by a tax attorney, but who wanted my opinion on whether there was anything his attorney could have done to avoid the following, very unfortunate situation. Read more >>
September 18, 2014
California’s Franchise Tax Board: Hard to Deal With
My clients owed the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) $8,000 for the 2011 tax year; they filed their return late, and couldn’t pay it all at once. The FTB sent a notice that it was about to levy Read more >>
September 15, 2014
Who Really Owns Your Debt?
I deal a lot with bill collectors. Here is an eye-opening description of how their business works. Settling a debt can be . . . unsettling. Read more >>
September 9, 2014
Two Good Reasons to Avoid Post-Bankruptcy Loans
A client sent me a letter he got from a car dealership touting the financing he can get even though he is currently in bankruptcy. You can find a copy of the letter here. How does a car dealer think Read more >>
September 4, 2014
Payday Lenders: Predators
Here is a very amusing and outraged report on “payday lenders” from John Oliver, the British reporter who apprenticed with Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert. He’s accurate in presenting the problem Read more >>
August 29, 2014
A Little-Known Bankruptcy Benefit
Bankruptcy works in unexpected ways. That’s how a colleague sells his potential clients on hiring him to get a discharge in bankruptcy. And he’s right. My client opened a fast-food. Read more >>
July 30, 2014
Investment Activity and Your Tax Return
Most people know that they can’t claim losses incurred by a hobby – say, for instance, their side hobby of breeding and raising Great Pyrenees dogs. No profit motive, no deduction Read more >>
July 10, 2014