California Bankruptcy Lawyer Blog

Sacramento Bankruptcy Attorney Discusses the Current Foreclosure and Bankruptcy Crisis, along with FEMA

If there was ever a silver lining in the current foreclosure and bankruptcy crisis, then it would be the ingenuity of the solutions that get sparked. The latest one comes from Florida. There is a proposal on the table to allow FEMA to use foreclosed properties to house people displaced by hurricanes. Basically, instead of building new homes or while the homes are being built, the displaced can use homes in Florida that have been abandoned and owned by the banks. The idea seems win-win. Banks have no ability to sell these properties anyway in this market and the displaced need a place to live. FEMA would be able to use the resources already available to carry out its mandate. Communities like the idea because it will mean no more empty houses which invites vandalism and decreases property values.

Of course, as with an good idea, there are nay-sayers. The first problems are the logistics such as who would be picked, how they would get to the new housing, and how it would matched (for example the right house for the right sized family). The next problem is a long term situation. What happens when the market turns or if the bank needs to actually sell the property? Can they evict the tenants and what rights would they have? Finally, there is a moral challenge, should Florida be using the displaced victims as a means to jump start their faltering real estate situation? Whatever the answer may be, the most valuable lesson is that even in calamity, there is opportunity.

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.

San Jose Bankruptcy Attorney Discusses how the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes filed for protection under Chapter 11

Every part of the country no matter in what field that you work in is affected by the current downturn in the economy. Even sports teams are not isolated from the perils of bankruptcy.
In the week of May 12, 2009, the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes filed for protection under Chapter 11. Perhaps if Chrysler's bankruptcy hadn't been stealing the headlines this item would have made more waves. What makes this case interesting, obviously, is the fact it is a professional sports franchise. As such, there are a lot of big time sports stars that are waiting for their paychecks until the Bankruptcy Court approves the payment of pre-petition wage claims. None of those names is bigger than the Great One himself, Wayne Gretzky. Gretzky is in the hockey hall of fame, but he still may not get paid for all those goals scored. In total, the Coyotes have asked to pay over half a million dollars in pre-petition wages. Along with his salary, Gretzky is also a creditor of the estate to the tune of $8 milliion in deferred compensation. A Chapter 11 bankruptcy is a repayment plan that has to accepted by all the creditors as well as the bankruptcy trustee. Therefore, until the plan is adopted, The Coyotes are going to have to come up with the money to play their players.

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.

San Jose Bankruptcy Lawyer Discusses Six Flags Theme Park Filing for Bankruptcy

It's the summer and there's nothing better than heading out to your local theme park for some crazy rides. But if you're headed to a Six flags Theme Park, you better enjoy it while you can because even they are not insulated from the worsening economy. The New York Times reports that Six Flags, the big theme park operator, filed for bankruptcy in early Saturday morning in Delaware after failing to reach an agreement with lenders over a plan to reorganize its debt outside of court. Six Flags became only the latest company to prove unable to cope with its debt load at a time when previous solutions like refinancings are largely unavailable. The theme park operator, which had $2.4 billion in debt, faced nearly $300 million in payments to preferred stockholders due in August. But the company is hoping to make its ride through bankruptcy a short one. In a statement, Six Flags said that it is seeking court approval for a pre-negotiated restructuring plan, one that has the unanimous approval of its lenders. That proposal would eliminate $1.8 billion in debt and slice off the $300 million in preferred stock payments. “The current management team inherited a $2.4 billion debt load that cannot be sustained, particularly in these challenging financial markets,” Mark Shapiro, Six Flags’s chief executive, said in a statement. “As a result, we are cleaning up the past and positioning the Company for future growth.”In its bankruptcy filing, Six Flags said that 37 of its subsidiaries, including parks like Great Adventure and Hurricane Harbor, had also sought court protection. The parks will continue to operate normally, but analysts have questioned whether attendance would fall off as some consumers shun waiting in line for roller coasters at a bankrupt theme park operator. Six Flags said in its statement that the filing comes despite a good 2008, in which the company cut its net loss to $135 million from $275 million a year ago. Its net loss for the first three months of 2009 narrowed nearly 7 percent from the same time in 2008, to $146.3 million. But the company saw a 24 percent drop in revenue over the same period, as it suffered from lower attendance and spending at its parks.

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.

Fremont Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Attorney Talks About Lenny Dykstra CH 11 Bankruptcy

For most of the United States, the name Lenny Dykstra is a baseball favorite that played for the Mets and the Phillies. For those who have kept an eye in the market world, the name Lenny Dykstra is a stock picker who markets his system for beating the market by claiming he has made over 100 winning stock picks. The first irony is that both are the same person. Lenny Dykstra has leveraged his brand name into a business to push his system of portoflio management. The second irony is that he just filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

Before we start shaking our head at a shooting star that flashed out, Mr. Dykstra is hardly a pauper with a hat in hand. He filed bankruptcy to stop a foreclosure on his property appraised at $25 million when he brought it for $17.5 million. Like most bankruptcy's today, Mr. Dykstra is a victim of a real estate scheme that went awry. Lenny needed $17.5 million to buy Wayne Gretzky's (yes, that Wayne Gretzky) estate. He was unable to get all the money in one loan (he could only get a $12 million dollar loan) so he had to take a second loan. Lenny, showing some dubious financial savvy, took an $8 million dollar second loan which resulted in $2.5 million dollars over the buying price. Theoretically, Lenny had more than enough equity to cover.

But that left Lenny with a $200,000.00 a month mortgage payment with his $125,000 income. Lenny tried to refinance and learned that being a baseball star does not open up the credit market to you. So he filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Rumor is that Lenny is worth over $15 million dollars due to his winning market action. If that were true, did he really need to file bankruptcy?

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.

San Jose CH 11 Bankruptcy Attorney Talks About GM Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

GM has shown indicated that it plans to exit out of Chapter 11 Bankruptcy before the end of July. For those keeping track, GM went into CH 11 bankruptcy in June. That means in less than 2 months, GM was able to restructure its debt and emerge a leaner company. There was no financial magic that allowed for such a quick recovery, just a simple divide of the GM pie. The US government now owns about 60% of the new GM, 11% owned by Canada, 17% owned by a union controlled health care trust, and 10% by GM bondholders. GM shareholders receive nothing.

GM's unsecured debt of $54 million is shrunk down to a fraction of that amount. Other unwanted contracts and liabilities (which were not sold to foreign investors) will be held by the old company under a new name, Motors Liquidation Co. The company will dispose of the assets over the next few years.

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.

Sacramento Bankruptcy Attorney Talks About Eddie Bauer Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Recently, Eddie Bauer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. While the bankruptcy itself did not seem like incredible news except for the fact that Eddie Bauer had a potential buyer already. A private equity buyer wanted to buyer Eddie Buer for $202 million. Eddie Bauer has secured loans totalling $240 million which would leave little for unsecured lenders. In the Chapter 11, the secured lenders can have their loans modified but only by so much as their debt is tied to some asset, like land.

However, this case has hit a wrinkle which has rised the interest of many people in the bankruptcy world. The Judge has ruled that Eddie Bauer's assets can be auctioned off individualling instead of bulk bidding. To clarify, the private equity buyer is trying to buy all of Eddie Bauer assets for $202 million. Normally, another buyer would have to beat the $202 million for all of the assets. But with the Judge's ruling, buyers could just bid for smaller assets and not have to buy everything.

The upside of this ruling is that with many interested buyers, Eddie Bauer may achieve a larger liquidation value as each of their assets is sold for the maxium value. That means creditors may get more than the $202 million currently being offered. The downside is that this may mean the end of Eddie Bauer as each buyer may just want to buy a certain piece without the Eddie Bauer label attached. This may also result in several useless or low valued assets that will have to liquidated for extreme firesale prices. This also means the private equity firm will have thier bid cancelled.

Also, the question raised is what happens if the bidding brings in a total price below the $202 million. Can the private equity firm's bid still be honored if the buyers discover that their bid is too high?

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.

San Jose Bankruptcy Attorney Talks About Eddie Bauer Bankruptcy

The latest big name company to file for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy is clothing stalwart Eddie Bauer. The clothing retailer filed on June 17 in Delaware. This CH 11 bankruptcy is another sign that no particular industry is safe in these economic times as electronics retailer Circuit City, financial giant Lehman Brothers, and top auto makers GM and Chrysler have gone into bankruptcy.

Eddie Bauer lost $44.5 million dollars in the first quarter of 2009 and its revenues declined $33.4 million dollars from the year before. This showed a negative trend for Eddie Bauer's income which basically left it now choice but to file for creditor protection. The Bankruptcy Court approved $90 million dollars in loans to ensure that Eddie Bauer stores can continue to operate and certain vendors to be paid while Eddie Bauer finishes the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

The current plan for Eddie Bauer is very different from the GM and Chrysler Bankruptcies. The Court will most likely auction off the company. At the time of bankruptcy, a private equity firm had bid $202 million dollars in cash for the company. As a reminder, GM and Chrysler have the government taking partial ownership the automakers. Eddie Bauer's stock closed at 18 cents a share the day of the bankruptcy.

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.

San Francisco Bankruptcy Attorney discusses Bankruptcy as a Step to Solvency

Many consumers are terrified at the prospect of filing for Bankruptcy. There is a widespread stigma of failure and embarrassment associated with bankruptcy. However, given the current state of the economy and the collapse of the housing market, filing bankruptcy has become millions of people’s only choice to obtain a fresh start. People have to file for bankruptcy due to circumstances beyond their control and lenders have to accept this reality if they intend to have a future in the lending business.

Another consumer concern is that filing for bankruptcy will cause irreparable harm to their credit. On the contrary, filing for bankruptcy will stop the bleeding and allow the consumer to begin rebuilding healthy credit. Furthermore, if a consumer is considering bankruptcy, it is likely that their credit score has already taken a major hit. While the fact that a consumer filed for bankruptcy will remain on their credit report for 10 years, people who file for bankruptcy generally see quality paper for car loans within 1-2 years and decent interest rates for mortgages within 2-3 years.

Finally, the biggest benefit of filing for bankruptcy is escaping the stress of constant creditor hounding and worrying about how to make ends meet. Restoring sanity and peace of mind makes consumers more productive in every aspect of their lives, especially personally and professionally.

If you have a question regarding Bankruptcy please contact us at 1-800-941-6730 or visit www.bkanswers.com and we can connect you with one of our experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys. After you have spoken with one of our bankruptcy attorneys we can schedule you a free face to face appointment in our office location nearest you. Our team of Bankruptcy Lawyers can assist you with all aspects of your case. If you are have questions about filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, a chapter 11 bankruptcy, a chapter 13 bankruptcy, lien stripping, cram down, stopping a foreclosure or wage garnishment, discharging debt, etc. we can help! We have bankruptcy attorneys located throughout California who can assist your needs. Please feel free to complete our free bankrupcty evaluation and we can quickly determine if you are a qualified candidate for bankruptcy.