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Boulder County was one of the original counties of the state of Colorado. Due to easy access to natural resources, the city of Boulder itself is not just a place for people to live, it also has the greatest concentration of natural and organic food products in the country.
Unfortunately, a good place to live and a dynamic economy are still not absolute protection from financial difficulties for Boulder County residents. Similar to criminal acts, there are legal guidelines in place in Colorado to help regulate financial activities, especially for important groups like businesses and banks. However, circumstances can sometimes disrupt plans and cause financial challenges. In serious instances, financial organizations may be crossing legal boundaries in their treatment of customers or clients, which calls for help from an experienced financial law attorney in Boulder County. This can be particularly important in situations where bankruptcy must be filed.
Bankruptcy, understandably, is not regarded as a positive experience but it’s not the unrecoverable disaster that some may imagine. Bankruptcy is a legally recognized financial process that provides protection, organization, and management of debt obligations for people or businesses that can no longer manage this on their own. There are general guidelines for bankruptcy at the Federal level, but because the US provides a lot of autonomy to states to fine-tune laws for their regional needs, bankruptcy regulations also exist at the state level and Colorado is no exception.
However, bankruptcy is not a single condition, and there are different debt situations that may be categorized differently. While some general requirements exist to file for bankruptcy, like an inability to handle current debt obligations, exact details will differ based on the specific financial circumstances a person or business finds themselves in. A bankruptcy attorney in Boulder County can help resolve many different bankruptcy situations, like:
Chapter 13 bankruptcy carries the nickname “wage earner’s plan” because it’s a common solution in circumstances where a person still has access to a regular income like a salary from a full-time job. Because of this, some consider Chapter 13 to be a less drastic category of bankruptcy.
Chapter 13 bankruptcy is about debt management through formal payment structuring. Here, a person’s debt is discharged by creating a three to five-year plan and then paying that in installments like any car loan or mortgage. A person must demonstrate they have a verifiable income or revenue stream with a total debt of less than $2.75 million to qualify for Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
Chapter 7 bankruptcy is often regarded as a more drastic method of discharging a person’s debt. Here, the solution is to recover payments through asset liquidation. This method is usually chosen if Chapter 13 is not an option due to a lack of incoming funds.
Liquidation, in this instance, means selling off the assets a debtor currently owns such as property or possessions like professional or residential equipment, vehicles, and furniture. Both businesses and private individuals can file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Generally speaking, Boulder County residents have some measure of protection due to Colorado consumer lending laws, which regulate the way banks and other financial groups must behave. Additionally, these outline methods of resolution for people with debt issues or other economic concerns, as well as how creditors and their debt collectors can go about interacting with Boulder County residents when it comes to collecting payments. There are laws at the Federal and state levels governing how creditors and their debt collectors are permitted to act.
Unfortunately, there are instances where unethical creditors may rely on Boulder County residents’ ignorance about their consumer rights and act illegally, hoping they won’t realize their rights have been violated. It is illegal for debt collectors to threaten, insult, or lie to people in their interactions. They are also not permitted to call very late at night or early in the morning, or call a workplace if there’s a management policy in place. Anyone who has experienced this treatment with a debt collector should contact a Boulder County financial law attorney.
There are some instances where a legally imposed form of debt management creates more problems than it solves. Wage garnishment is sometimes one of these instances. Wage garnishment occurs when a Boulder County resident is required by courts to have a portion of their salary partitioned off and dedicated to paying a debt. For example, a divorced parent who misses too many child support payments may have their wages garnished to ensure future payments are made on time.
Few things in life are as upsetting as a person having their home taken away from them and then put up for sale by a mortgage lender. This, however, is what happens when foreclosure occurs and a creditor, like a bank, has decided too many payments have been missed so property must be seized in an attempt to recover the debt.
It’s important to keep in mind that even if a creditor decides to move ahead with foreclosure, this doesn’t mean a resident has lost all rights—the foreclosure process, whether just advanced notice or already served, may still be challenged. Financial law or debt attorneys in Boulder County can help residents overcome these challenges and navigate local regulations like the Rule 120 Hearing that creditors need to file with courts before proceeding with foreclosure.
To the average Boulder County resident, the credit card is a cornerstone of modern financial life, especially for those who rely on them for making purchases online, booking a hotel, or renting a vehicle. However, the ease and convenience of credit cards can sometimes cause big problems if they are used without restraint. This is a common issue here, as Colorado ranks #1 in the country for credit card debt.
Fortunately, programs are available in Colorado to help manage credit card debt. If a credit card debt situation grows serious, such as a credit card company taking legal action to secure payments or in instances of credit card fraud, a financial law or debt attorney in Boulder County can help to solve these issues.
For the state of Colorado, the term repossession usually focuses on vehicles if a loan was taken out and too many payments have been missed. However, seizing a vehicle isn’t something that a loan holder can do on impulse after a missed payment or two. There is a legal process debt collectors must comply with before they can seize a vehicle without being charged with theft.
For anyone who has missed some payments and feels at risk, or the repossession has already occurred, a Boulder County debt attorney may be able to help. There are options, such as transitioning to specific types of bankruptcy that render vehicles off-limits.
For most lawsuits, Boulder County residents are best served working with litigation attorneys. However, some circumstances, like a creditor deciding to file a debt-based lawsuit, require comprehensive financial and legal knowledge, not just knowledge of civil law. Boulder County financial law attorneys are invaluable here, as the nuances of a lawsuit or the threat of a lawsuit from debt collectors require knowledge and experience with the financial regulations in Colorado.
While America is fortunate to offer some of the most advanced medical treatments in the world, that can come at a tremendous cost. This may be disastrous for someone without solid healthcare insurance from an employer. If someone is unfortunate to require high-end treatment or has an ongoing chronic condition, medical debt can skyrocket quickly.
Boulder County debt attorneys assist during such challenging periods, helping people manage their situation and implement debt management options, such as transitioning to bankruptcy while retaining access to healthcare. This is an important consideration when, unlike other types of debt, a life may depend on this ongoing care.
It’s not only banks that offer loans. Other organizations may provide faster and easier approval, but this comes at a much greater cost. Late fees, higher interest rates, and other harsh penalties are a few of the ways loans from “payday companies” can turn loans into major problems.
Sometimes, the debt can spike dramatically even without an additional loan. However, Boulder County residents can get help managing this from a financial or debt attorney.
Erin Lane is ready to help Boulder County residents with debt or other legal and financial issues. She is a founding member of the Washington Law Group and is now expanding her practice to Colorado. She is eager to provide legal assistance to anyone struggling with a debt problem or other legal issues of a financial nature.