WHAT TO BRING TO YOUR APPOINTMENT
In order to prepare your bankruptcy petition, you need to provide the items outlined below. Do your best to collect this information, but if you are missing something, that is ok. If you have any questions contact Carolyn Patrick.- Debts. For each debt you owe, we will need
the creditor's name and address, your account number, the year you incurred
the debt, and the approximate amount you owe. For each debt, please bring
the most recent bill you have.
A credit report is often helpful in identifying creditors. You can order a credit report by writing to Trans Union at P.O. Box 390, Springfield, PA 19064-0390 or Experian at P.O. Box 2104, Allen, TX 75013-2104.. Both require (1) your full name, (2) address (and all other addresses for the last five years), (3) social security number, (4) date of birth, (5) current employer, (6) phone number and (7) payment of $8.00. (You do not need to have the credit report for our first meeting. You can drop it off or mail it to us when you get it.)
- Vehicles. Please bring a copy of the title for each vehicle you
own.
- Secured Creditors. For each secured debt we will need the note,
security agreement and current pay-off balance. (A secured debt is a loan
for which you pledged your property as collateral to secure the loan. Common
secured loans include car loans, mortgages and loans from finance companies.)
- Monthly Income. You will need to bring the
most recent 6 months' worth of paychecks or other proof of pay for that
period.
- Monthly Expenses. Be prepared to tell us how
much you send per month on average for rent, utilities, telephone, food,
clothing, laundry, medical, transportation. (Many of your expenses will
vary from month to month. Try to estimate your average monthly expense
for each category.)
- Income Tax Returns. Bring copies of your income
tax returns for the last four years. If you don't have the tax returns,
bring W-2 wage statements or be prepared to tell us your income for those
years. Also be prepared to discuss why you do not have the tax returns.
- Bank Accounts. If you have closed any account in the past twelve
months, we will need to know the name and address of the bank, the account
number, the date you closed the account and the balance in the account
when you closed it.
- Life Insurance. If you have any life insurance policies that can
be cashed in for money or borrowed against, we will need to know the name
of the company, the current cash value and how much you could borrow against
the policy.
- Retirement Plan. If you have a retirement plan, profit sharing
plan, 401(k) or IRA we'll need to know the balance in that account.
- Personal Injury Claim. If you have sued someone (or plan to sue
someone) for a personal injury you have incurred, please bring all the
paper work (if any) that you have related to your claim. We also need to
know about any other claims you may have.
- Lawsuits. If you have been sued in the last twelve months, please
bring all the paper work that you have related to the lawsuit.
- Real Estate. If you own any real estate, we will need the following
information:
- The street address of the property;
- Recorded copies of the mortgage and mortgage
note;
- The current pay-off balance on the mortgage.
Since the pay-off balance is something
that changes daily, you will need to contact
the mortgage company and obtain this information
over the phone;
- A copy of the most recent property tax
bill showing the assessed value; and
- If a foreclosure proceeding has been started, please bring all paper work you have related to the foreclosure.
- The street address of the property;