After bankruptcy reform legislation became law in 2005, one of the new requirements that have to be met by Belleville consumers filing for bankruptcy is to get credit counseling. Those filing for bankruptcy need to check with their lawyers to make sure that the provider for credit counceling Belleville IL is approved by the bankruptcy court. The date of the session has to be within bankruptcy guidelines as well. If the credit counseling session is completed too early, it won’t count towards meeting the requirements for bankruptcy.
Although many people filing for bankruptcy view the credit counceling Belleville IL as another hurdle to jump over in order to get their bankruptcy cases approved by the trustee, it is also an opportunity for consumers to learn more about personal finance and debt management. One of the most important lessons that consumers should learn is how to budget. Although some people end up in bankruptcy due to unexpected expenses such as medical bills for a sudden illness, some people spent more than they made. In the long run, spending more leads to excessive debt and bankruptcy. That is why time is spent during credit counseling sessions on how to budget. Time is also spent on how to stick with a budget once it is set. Those who are filing for chapter 13 will need to work on the budget immediately since that will be necessary to getting through the repayment period until the chapter 13 bankruptcy case is over.
Debt management is another important topic covered during credit counseling. A common problem is that they have no idea how to get out of debt. Should a consumer pay more than the minimum monthly payment amount? If it is necessary to pay more than the minimum, which creditor should get more than the minimum? If there is a high monthly payment from installment debt such as a car loan, would it be beneficial to pay it off sooner? Those are questions that can be addressed during credit counseling sessions. Don’t look at these sessions as busy work. Instead, these sessions help give consumers information that will help during and after the bankruptcy while meeting the minimum requirements for getting a bankruptcy filing approved.
