Katrina bankruptcy

Letter to “Ask Leon”

Hi Mr. Bayer, i’ve been reading a lot of these postings trying to educate myself but bankruptcy law seems very complicated. My husband and I are in n.o. and went thru Katrina. I lost my job, company still closed and my husbands company had 5 ft. of water. They are struggling but staying afloat so far. our income went from 80,000. to about 43,000. I have medical issues and was not able to work for up to a year at a time. I take pain medication, very expensive, and have no insurance. We have about 25,000. cc debt most of which has been charged off. We are concerned about lawsuits, garnishment, liens, etc. we are also buying the biz my husband works for with 7 other people. The biz pays each owner the 950. To pay note to owner each month. There is 5 more yrs. left on this promissory note for this biz we are buying. My question is, is this note we are paying to biz owner considered as part of the debt therefore we would have to stop paying her and that 950.00 would get divided amongst creditors? The only reason the biz gives us that money is to pay to her, it was set up as part of the purchase agreement. And also would the court allow me the money to buy my pain medication, we own our home and an old 1992 car. We really don’t have any savings. We have already had to cash out 2 of our ire’s this year because of this mess and 2 major plumbing problems and ac breaking. We had no water for months because city pipes were broken and leaking from Katrina, didn’t find this out till after we paid plumber 2,500.00. Anyway our credit was great before, we kept up with everything and now everything has gone to hell in a handbag! Any advice is appreciated, thanks, bev

Leon Says…

Please go see a local bankruptcy attorney expert right away. Your husband’s interest in the business and the debt for purchasing the business, along with home ownership are just some of the reasons why this is too complicated to analyze via long distance. You need a live in-person consultation with an expert to receive adequate advice. Don’t be shy about doing that.