9) Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

You might be a good candidate for Chapter 13 bankruptcy if you find yourself in any of the following situations:

1. You have a real and sincere desire to pay your debts back, but you need the protection of the bankruptcy court in order to do so.
 
2. You are behind on your mortgage or car loan, and want to make up for the missed payments over time. Chapter 7 bankruptcy won’t let you do this. You can make up for missed payments only in Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

3. You will need help in order to repay your debts now, but want to be able to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the near future. This might be the case if for some reason you cannot stop adding to the debt.

4. You are a family farmer who would like to pay off your debts, but you don’t qualify for a Chapter 12 family farming bankruptcy as you have big debt which is unrelated to farming.

5. You have property which is valuable and not exempt. When you declare yourself bankrupt through Chapter 7 bankruptcy, some of your property will be exempt from collection. If you have a lot of nonexempt property, Chapter 13 bankruptcy might be the best option for you.

6. You’ve received a Chapter 7 discharge within the previous six years.
 
7. You have someone who is also in debt along with you. If you file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, your creditor will seek the co-debtor for payment should you not be able to pay. This will happen should you get credit with a co-signer.
 
8. You have a tax debt. If a big part of your debt consists in federal taxes, what happens to your tax debts might determine which type of bankruptcy is best suited for you.

9. If you fail with all these suggestions, then you can start to consider filing for Bankruptcy.

Go to the next page of our bankruptcy recovery guide: Starting Credit Rebuilding