Las Vegas, Nevada – Consumer Bankruptcy May Be Part Of A Plan For Any Employee Impacted By Layoffs From The Coronavirus
The highly contagious Coronavirus has already inflicted a medical emergency across the world. Now the virus Covid-19 has caused all non-essential businesses in the State of Nevada to close, the Las Vegas Strip has temporarily closed its doors for the next several weeks. It is now looking like this closure may last many more weeks.
The suspension of non-essential business operations is leading to the furlough of thousands of Las Vegas employees and the loss of income for small business owners. The Las Vegas Strip employees impacted by such closures are casino dealers, housekeeping, restaurant servers, cooks, performers, bartenders, retail sales clerks, front desk, porters, valet and so forth. Moreover, all of the businesses that are ancillary to the Las Vegas Strip will be negatively affected. Such as Taxi, Uber and Lyft drivers, and tour groups.
Any work stoppage may cause severe financial hardship for any family. Especially so for the many workers living paycheck to paycheck. However, a weeks-long or months-long work stoppage will be a financial disaster to even the most prepared. Mortgage payments are still expected to be paid, groceries are needed, and the power bill will continue to come in.
Las Vegas employees live and spend their hard-earned money in the Las Vegas community. And when there is a cut back on their spending in the local economy, there is a ripple effect throughout the Las Vegas area. Discretionary spending is usually the first to go. This will lead to a weakening in the overall job market in the Las Vegas area.
With the Federal and local governments restriction on travel, the tourist-dependent Las Vegas Strip will suffer an even bigger hit than a temporary suspension of activity. At this time, it is unknown how long it may take to contain the Coronavirus. The recent strip closures are for two weeks, but it is possible it could be for many weeks longer. Even after any containment, it is unknown how long it may take for the tourist industry on the Las Vegas Strip to return to normal.
Anyone impacted by the downturn in the Las Vegas economy should have a plan with options to be as prepared as possible. Success favors the prepared!
Government relief
Anyone laid off should immediately apply for unemployment benefits. Nevada unemployment benefits are available for up to 26 weeks. During the 2007 – 2010 great recession, the federal government stepped in and unemployment benefits were extended to 52 weeks. The weekly amount of unemployment benefits is based on 4% of the highest-earning quarter of the base period. The weekly maximum is $427.00.
Undoubtedly, the federal government will be rolling out some form of relief as well. Initial relief may be a one-time payment of $1,000.00 – $2,000.00. This will probably be limited to people who are under a yet to be established income requirement.
I am sure whatever the governmental aid will ultimately be, it will not replace the incomes that the now out of work employees were earning before these massive layoffs. Collecting a maximum of less than $1,900.00 per month will leave many in a challenging financial position.
Hard decisions will soon confront many of us. At what point does one decide to stop making credit card and other loan payments? The answer is dependent on an array of factors: Amount of debt, length of time out of work, amount of cash reserves, amount of money paid when gainfully employed, any late payments or stopped making payments prior to the work stoppage.
Continuing payment on payday loans while on unemployment will probably not even be possible. Payday loans usually require two payments per month, and each payment is equal to 25% or more of the total amount of the loan. The super high-interest rate keeps the loan balance from going down. Again, someone who is unemployed, probably cannot maintain any payday loan payments.
Two things you should not do before consulting with me is liquidating a 401(K) account to pay debts or take a Home Equity loan to pay a debt:
1. Liquidating or borrowing against a 401(K) or other retirement accounts to pay debts may be a bad move
First, a retirement account is a form of saving to support yourself when you retire. The federal government encourages this form of savings by offering tax benefits and protections. As we are now witnessing, self-preparedness is paramount.
Second, a careful analysis should be conducted to determine whether personal bankruptcy is a potential option. If ultimately files for bankruptcy, most loans and credit card debts are eliminated. For a personal claiming Nevada exemptions, in a bankruptcy, a 401(K) account may be protected up to $500,000.00. Thus, liquidating a 401(K) to pay-off some of the debt, or to pay-off and then recharge up debt, and later still file for bankruptcy would result in the needless loss of your valuable retirement account.
2. Taking a Home Equity loan to pay debts may not be a good move for you
First, debts such as credit cards and payday loans are unsecured. There is no property or collateral securing the debt. So if you fail to pay back the loan there is no collateral for the lender to take. The lender may take legal action against you for failing to pay the loan, but there is no property directly tied to the loan.
In contrast, a secured debt there is some collateral that secures the debt. The collateral is usually a home or vehicle. A home equity loan is a secured loan. In a home equity loan (secured debt) if you fail to pay back the loan the lender may foreclose on your home. The problem with taking home equity to pay an unsecured debt is that you are essentially turning the unsecured debts into secured debt. In a bankruptcy claiming Nevada exemptions, you can protect your homestead up to $550,000.00 in equity.
The Coronavirus has presented Las Vegas with a scary medical challenge. The fallout from this medical emergency is the immediate stoppage of work. If you are faced with unmanageable debt, credit card, payday loans, behind on home mortgage payments, please do not hesitate to contact the Law Office of Rodney K. Okano at (702) 566-3600.
I am available to discuss potential options over the telephone without the need to leave your home:
American women are much more likely to have unpaid medical debt, increasing the risks of bankruptcy, compared to women in other parts of the world. According to new research that has recently been released by the nonprofit organization, the Commonwealth Fund, approximately 26% of Americans had unpaid medical bills in 2009-2010.
Medical Bills: Unexpected And Expensive
That was staggeringly high medical debt, compared to women in Australia who held about 13% in unpaid medical debt. In Germany, just about 4% of women had unpaid medical bills during that same period of time.
Consider All Options
Part of the problem seems to be that many American women purchase health insurance coverage either under duress by the insurer, or without going through all available options. Insurers may sell plans that don’t cover many important conditions. As many personal bankruptcy lawyers in Las Vegas see, a woman with insufficient coverage may find that her insurance plan does not cover her illness, leaving her with heavy unpaid medical bills.
Am I Covered?
Women who are of childbearing age must be much more careful when they purchase their insurance policies and must make sure that the services that they need during these years, like childbirth, are covered in these plans. The Commonwealth Fund says that women who belong to this age demographic are at a high risk of not being able to afford the healthcare they require. Many of these women may have trouble with medical debt and, and consequently, often, they have no other option but to file for bankruptcy.
The Commonwealth Fund also confirms that women are much more likely to use health care services than males, although they’re less able to afford healthcare insurance compared to males, because of their low incomes. The researchers compared the medical debt of women in the United States with those in Canada, France, Germany, Australia, Norway, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Sweden, Britain, and Switzerland.
If you are considering filing for bankruptcy in Las Vegas it is important that you fully understand what will happen to your assets. The two biggest assets that most people have are their car and their home. Under Nevada Exemptions, these two assets are usually protected from the bankruptcy process. This means that you can keep them if you declare bankruptcy. If you still owe money on the vehicle you may be able to temporarily stop repossession with a bankruptcy stay, while you sort your finances out.
Of course, if you still owe money on your house and/or car, you must continue to make payments, if you want to keep them. Otherwise, the lender may repossess your car or foreclose your home, and retake it. However, the Bankruptcy will eliminate any further obligation to make payments, if you decide to surrender such asset. It may be a good idea to seek advice from a motoring specialist lawyer to understand your right and your options.
Do You Always Get To Keep Your Car?
Under Nevada Law, the first $15,000 of equity held in a standard motor vehicle is exempt. This means that if your car is worth less than $15,000, it may be classed as exempt. A car that is worth more than $15,000 may also be exempt if your equity (the difference between the value of the vehicle and the amount of money you owe) is less than $15,000. In addition, if you are disabled or one of your dependents is disabled and the vehicle has been specially equipped for use by that person, then it is exempt regardless of its value.
This means that if you are filing for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy In Las Vegas, the trustee will not sell your car. Very important to note, not all people immediately qualify to apply Nevada exemptions to their bankruptcy case. Just because one files for bankruptcy in the State of Nevada does not necessarily mean they are eligible for Nevada exemptions. You must have resided in the State of Nevada for two years prior to filing for bankruptcy in Nevada.
Note that if you still owe money on your car and want to keep the financing, then you may need to sign a Reaffirmation Agreement. Such an agreement legally obligates you to pay all the monies due on the vehicle even after bankruptcy.
Bankruptcy Automatic Stay – Relief from collection activities
In most cases, the filing for bankruptcy in Vegas automatically imposes a stay against creditors from any collection activity. This stay is automatically applied when a person files for bankruptcy and the purpose of it is to give the debtor the opportunity relief from the harassment of creditors. During this, time the debt should decide whether they intend to retain their vehicle and to continue making payments, or surrender it and stop making payments.
For this reason, it is important that you act quickly and communicate with your lenders proactively to avoid repossession.
If your car has been repossessed, then you may be able to get it back in a chapter 13 bankruptcy, but you will need to move quickly to do this. Applying for the return of your assets using this rule can be complex, and it is best to seek professional legal advice from a bankruptcy attorney who can stop car repossession and to ensure that things are done properly.
The window of opportunity that you have for getting your assets returned is small and any mistakes made during the process could invalidate your claim. If you do get your vehicle returned to you using this rule then you will still have to follow the processes for reaffirming your obligations, and make payments on the loan going forward, to prevent repossession from happening again. Reassess your finances and make sure that you can make those payments before you pursue this avenue.
Whether there’s a pandemic like there is now, or there’s some other economic crisis, you may find it hard to make ends meet. You may fall behind on your payments, or you may miss them altogether. Your balances may start climbing, and you may start getting harassing phone calls from creditors.
You may start thinking about filing for bankruptcy as a way to free up the money you need and to regain control of your finances. While bankruptcy may ultimately be the right answer for you, you may also want to consider some other options before you file. A vehicle title loan could be the right option.
Prevent Collections Or Repossession
Most people don’t just stop paying their bills because they don’t feel like paying them. They just don’t have the money. If they had the money, they would pay. If you find yourself in this position, you can get the money you need by taking out an auto title loan. You can borrow up to the value of your vehicle – so long as you own your vehicle outright and have a title in your name.
You can use the money from your title loan to pay off accounts that are about to go into collections or repossession. That will save you from more money problems that will result from the fines, interest rates, and penalties that will make your balances even larger (and harder to pay off).
Pay Down Higher Interest Items
Unfortunately, some vehicle title loans have a bad reputation for high-interest rates because there are some bad companies out there who maintain predatory terms. However, if you shop around, you can find a quality, reputable title loan company that will give you competitive terms.
With the right terms, you can use your title loan to pay off credit cards and other accounts that have a higher interest rate. You can save a little money on your monthly bills, and you can save a lot of money in the long term.
Consolidate Your Debt Payments
You may try to take out additional credit cards or other lines of credit to make ends meet when you are struggling. Eventually, you have multiple minimum monthly payments that you are making, but you aren’t putting a dent in your overall balance because you are only paying off the interest. Meanwhile, you have no money left over each month because you are putting everything into your debt payments.
By getting a title loan, you can pay off all your credit lines (depending on how much value there is in your vehicle), and you can have one monthly payment to make. That can bring down your overall monthly payment, helping to gain greater control over your monthly budget. You can free up money so that you don’t have to turn to take out more lines of credit when expenses arise, or you can put that additional money into savings for a rainy day.
If used wisely, an auto title loan can help you gain greater control of your finances so that your debts don’t spiral out of control and you don’t need to file for bankruptcy. What’s possible depends entirely on the value of your vehicle, the terms you get for your title loan, and your other financial circumstances. Shop around to find the best title loan company and the best terms. The better your interest rates and other terms, the more advantageous the loan will be and the sooner you will be able to get your finances under control. If your debt problem is advanced, talk to a bankruptcy attorney about how filing for bankruptcy may be the better choice.
If you are interested in a title loan, call USA Money Today to get a quote with competitive rates. We offer the best title loans in Las Vegas and the surrounding area. We offer quick approval so that you can get the cash you need today. We offer low rates, and we don’t charge any penalties for pre-payment of your loan. Contact us in Las Vegas today to learn about our title loans and find out why we have more than 600 five-star reviews!
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