Credit Card Debt Laws That You Need to Know
With the struggling economy, many people are finding themselves deep in credit card debt. Therefore, consumers are forced to turn to debt consolidation in order to get control of their finances. However, before a person decides to consolidate their credit card debt, they need to be aware of the credit...
Paying Off Debt With Debt Consolidation
Living with debt is by no means easy. There’s the constant concern of living paycheck to paycheck and the never ending issue of covering monthly bills and living expenses. While most of us pride ourselves on being self-sufficient, it’s hard to ignore that we all sometimes live well beyond our means....


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Washington DC
When George W. Bush signed the new bankruptcy laws in Spring of 2005, few could predict the long-term impact this would have on the ability of truly overwhelmed debtors to seek debt relief through bankruptcy. After a couple years with the new law, however, it is clear that creditors won this battle in a landslide.

The biggest difference between the bankruptcy law of yesterday and today is that you can no longer choose which chapter bankruptcy you want to file. This should be of the utmost importance to District of Columbia debtors with an above average salary or monthly income. The reason: you could be forced to file Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Under this plan, your debt could be paid back in full over a five year period, while still causing tremendous damage to your credit score. Here’s some Washington D.C. median income figures from 2006 to get a rough idea of where you stand:

2-person families 65,913
3-person families 59,619
4-person families 71,571
5-person families 35,754
6-person families 49,423
7-or-more-person families 75,135

If your income exceeds the median in DC, you will need to pass the bankruptcy means test in order to qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

Rather not deal with the headache and credit impact of filing bankruptcy? Let PayingPaul.Com match you with a pre-qualified debt service for help!

Or feel free to check out some other resources about Washington D.C. debt laws:

Washington DC Consumer Credit Counseling Services
Washington DC Bankruptcy Laws
Washington DC Debt Collection

Bankruptcy Statistics for the District of Columbia

2004: 1,892
2005: 2,386
2006: 523

Washington D.C. saw a precipitous drop in the number of personal bankruptcy cases as a result of the passing of bankruptcy reform. In all, the total filings was 78% less in 2006 than in 2005. Needless to say, it’s safe to say that the new legislation was successful in pushing more District of Columbia consumers to bankruptcy alternatives like credit card debt negotiation and credit counseling programs.
 

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