Most people come to us unsure which one they need, and that's fine. That's the conversation. We'll look at what you earn, what you owe, and what you're trying to hold onto, then tell you plainly which path fits.
There's a lot of shame attached to the word, and there shouldn't be. Bankruptcy exists for honest people who hit something they couldn't absorb: a hospital stay, a job that disappeared, a marriage that ended. It is a legal fresh start, and it was written into the law on purpose.
A Chapter 7 can wipe out unsecured debt entirely, usually in a few months. A Chapter 13 sets up a payment plan you can actually live with, and it's often what saves a house or a car. Which one fits depends on your income, your property, and what matters most to you to keep.
Filing also triggers something called the automatic stay. The moment your case is filed, creditors have to stop. The calls stop, the garnishment stops, the foreclosure sale stops. For a lot of our clients, that first quiet week is the thing they remember.
Worried you make too much to qualify for Chapter 7? That's one of the most common reasons people don't call, and it's usually wrong. Here's how the means test actually works.
Sometimes filing isn't the right move, and we'll say so. Debt settlement means going to your creditors directly and negotiating down what you actually have to pay. No bankruptcy on your record, and often a good deal less than the balance they're chasing you for.
It isn't right for everyone either. It works best when you have some ability to pay something, and when the debts are the kind creditors are willing to deal on. We'll be straight with you about whether that describes your situation.
That's the normal place to start. Call and we'll walk through it together. It costs nothing and you're not committing to anything.
