Posts Tagged ‘Chapter 7 Bankruptcy’
Here’s an interesting article from Yahoo! Finance on a timely topic in Wisconsin.
If you live in Wisconsin and need advice on how to handle a foreclosure, call Miller and Miller today. With offices in Milwaukee, Germantown, and Kenosha, our attorneys are close by whether you live in Waukesha, Racine, or another part of Wisconsin.
It can be a daunting task to right the ship when faced with a foreclosure, however, there are options for those of you in this situation. Miller & Miller has helped thousands of Wisconsin families save their homes and get a financial fresh start. Click on this link to read a story from Yahoo! Finance on how three families fought to save their homes.
With offices in Milwaukee, Germantown, and Kenosha, our attorneys are close by if you live in Wisconsin and need advice you can count on. Call us today!
While the housing in metro Milwaukee is starting to pick up, below is a question that many homeowners are facing. Great stuff from Christopher Farrell of American Public Media.
Question: Three years ago — fresh out of grad school, with new jobs and lots of optimism — my husband and I bought a beautiful house that we love. Trouble is, we spent too much money. Now, our mortgage consumes nearly all of our monthly income, leaving us very little to save for retirement, our kids’ college funds or do the things we love such as traveling. We both work for non-profits and like our jobs, so the prospect of increasing our incomes significantly isn’t really there. We’re quite frugal, so there aren’t too many places to cut back. The good news is: We’re not underwater (according to our tax assessment) and we can make our mortgage payments and pay our bills. That said, if we had an emergency, lost a job or had a big home repair, we’d be in trouble.
The question, then, is: Should we cut our losses, try to sell and buy something cheaper? In our accounting, after the realtor fees, etc., we’d probably end up netting about what we owe and lose the about 10 percent equity we have. Is that crazy? Over the long-term, we think about all we could do with the difference between our current mortgage payment and what we’d pay on a house that was, say, $100,000 cheaper, and it seems to make sense. We’d love to hear your advice. Thank you! Julia, St. Paul, MN
Answer: In reading your email, I think you’ve already answered your question: You’re going to move into a cheaper place. It isn’t a crazy move at all. It’s a smart long-term move. House-poor is no way to live. A lesson of the turbulent economy of the past several years is everyone needs to create a margin of financial safety for their household. I applaud what you’re doing, and if I were in your circumstances, I’d be thinking along the same lines.
When it comes to homes, small(er) is financially beautiful. The mortgage is less. So are insurance, taxes, heating, cooling bills and other costs of ownership. These cost savings compound over time.
To me, the real issue you face is timing. When do you make your move?
What I would do to concretely grapple with that question is to start a serious look for the kind of home you’d like in your new price range and in neighborhoods you want to live in. Go to open houses. Hire a real estate agent. Visit homes for sale. You want to see what you can really get in the current market for the amount of money you’re thinking of investing. I would also see what you need to do to get your place ready for sale. What are homes like yours going for in the market?
You can then run actual numbers to see how you’ll stack up financially moving from where you are and into a cheaper place. You can see whether you might lose your down payment. You can weigh short-term costs vs. the long-term gains. And so on.
At the end of this research and number-crunching exercise, you might decide to wait another year. Then again, you might find the right place at a great price and the trade-offs to get there are worth it. With research, you’ll make an informed decision about the timing.
If you live in Southeastern Wisconsin, feel free to visit us for a free consultation at one of our offices in Milwaukee, Kenosha, or Germantown. We can help you to understand your options if you are looking for ways to save your home in Wisconsin. Call us today at 414-277-7742!
The Huffington Post chronicles this incredible story in which a debt collector allegedly called 911 on an 85 year old woman:
Read it here.
If you live in Southeastern Wisconsin and are being badgered by debt collectors call Miller and Miller today at 414-277-7742.
With offices in Milwaukee, Kenosha, and Germantown, we’re sure to be located close to you whether you live in Waukesha, Racine or somewhere in between.
Over at the MintLife Blog they recently had a great article on overpriced children’s items. After getting a fresh start through bankruptcy it is important to look for ways to keep costs down so that you are able to build a strong financial future. We all want to give the world to our children, but if you can do that while saving a buck it’s even better.
Read that article here.
Everyday people in the Milwaukee area are learning how to get out of financial trouble by meeting with one of our attorneys. Miller and Miller has offices in Milwaukee, Kenosha, and Germantown to ensure that wherever you are in Southeastern Wisconsin, we’re close.
Call us today at 414-277-7742 and schedule your free consultation!