Don’t declare personal bankruptcy until you have considered all of your bankruptcy alternatives. Personal bankruptcy should only be considered as a last resort, after all other bankruptcy alternatives have been considered and rejected.
Bankruptcy attorneys are busy, so they may not have time to discuss these bankruptcy alternatives with you in detail, so it’s up to you to do your own research. Here are four options that can help you avoid personal bankruptcy.
•Talk to a credit counselor. A credit counselor can give you advice about budgeting and managing your finances. A credit counselor will help you make a budget so you can figure out where your money is going. If you know where your money goes, you can reduce spending and use the money you saved to pay off your debts. If you can cut your spending and pay off your debts yourself, you can avoid personal bankruptcy.
•Reduce spending. A credit counselor can help you make a budget, buy only you can reduce your spending each month. Do you need premium cable television and all the extra features on your phone? If you can cut some features, you can save money. Make your own coffee instead of going to the coffee shop will save money. And making meals at home, instead of going to a restaurant, will also help you save money and avoid bankruptcy.
•Consider debt consolidation. If you have a good job and earn enough money each month, you may be able to go to a bank or credit union and borrow enough to repay of your debts in full. The big advantage of debt consolidation is that instead of trying to make payments to lots of different creditors, you only make one payment to the bank, and all of your other debts are gone.
•Make a deal directly with your creditors. It never hurts to ask, so get on the phone and call up the people you owe money to (your creditors) and ask them for a better deal. If you have been a good customer in the past, they may reduce the interest rate you are paying, or extend the term of the loan to make your monthly payments more manageable. Most creditors would rather help you now, rather than risk a bankruptcy in the future.
There are many bankruptcy alternatives, but they depend on you taking action to deal with them now, so don’t wait, get started now to avoid bankruptcy in the future.