Answer: My opinion is that bankruptcy can be a good thing. It is all a matter of your point of view. You may look at it from the obligation of the consumer (the person who obtained the debt) to pay their debts, but you could also look at it as the obligation of a head of household to provide for their family and its future. Making just the minimum payments on your credit cards, for example, it may take thirty (30) years or more to pay it off and that is only if you stop accumulating more debt along the way. If all you can afford is to pay the minimum payments month after month, year after year, you are not being financially responsible to your family by saving for your own retirement or sending your children to college.
I have never seen a mainstream media outlet advocate for the filing of bankruptcy until recently when the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) ran an article that said it was okay to file. When home values have plummeted and your house is underwater and you cannot make ends meet, it is okay to file for bankruptcy. In fact, it is a smart and financially responsible thing to do.
I read another very interesting article that was titled “Debt Stress Makes Us Sick!” The article tells of a health poll that found that people in financial distress are more likely to report health problems, including ulcers, severe depression, and even heart attacks.
This information should not surprise anyone – the information has been around for a long time. In 2005, researchers at three major universities surveyed three thousand (3,000) people regarding the negative effect of financial stress and found that the top three health effects of financial distress are stress, anxiety, and depression. I work with individuals who are buried in a mountain of debt every day, and I see first-hand the negative effects that debt stress can have.
Being in financial distress can negatively impact many areas of your life including your health. Take charge of negative financial stress today and do something to improve the quality of your life.
By filing for bankruptcy, you’re making a choice to put your family’s future first. Without creditors calling you several times each day, your life will have less stress. You will experience tranquility in your life. Your family will see your reduced level of stress and they, too, will be happier. We’ve heard the saying “If mother (or father) is happy, everyone is happy,” and it is true. With no more money going out to unsecured creditors, you will be able to begin saving and investing again for retirement or college. Bankruptcy can be your tool for reorganizing your estate, eliminating your debt, downsizing your life, and preparing for your future.
Bankruptcy allows you to eliminate unsecured debt, rewrite contracts on your family vehicles, and decrease the values and mortgages on your investment property. You can protect your retirement. Bankruptcy can also be used to remove unsecured second mortgages on homes.
Consider this. There is a husband and a wife – let’s call them Bob and Mary. Bob is a fifty (50) year old mechanical engineer who had a good job, but got laid off twice in one year. Mary is also fifty (50) years old, and had a decent job managing an office. Bob searched for work for close to a year each time he was laid off, but nobody would hire him. Bob and Mary looked at their options and decided to take a chance and open a chain sandwich shop with their retirement money. They ran the store for five years, but it was not working out financially. What should they do? If they do not declare bankruptcy, they could end up losing everything – their home included. They would have no money saved for their retirement, and any money they were able to earn would go toward paying down the debts. If they do not declare bankruptcy, they might end up on government assistance and the taxpayers would have to take care of them in their elder years. It gets expensive when you are older and have higher health care costs. Wouldn’t it be better for them to declare bankruptcy, get a fresh start, and begin saving again?
If you are struggling financially, now may be the time for you to file for bankruptcy. Congress intended bankruptcy to be a fresh start for the honest but unfortunate debtor. They may be talking about you. Put your health and your family first.
Shelley A. Elder, Esq.
Elder Law Firm, PLLC
Kennesaw, Georgia 30152
404-783-2244
Phillip G. Sanders, MBA, MSHA, CPA
