Credit Counseling

If you are fairly certain a bankruptcy is in your future (within 6 months) you should also take some steps to complete the mandatory credit counseling that is required under the new bankruptcy laws. The new law requires that you receive a credit counseling briefing from a certified credit counseling agency before you can file either a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy petition. The agency will explain financial management and will show you how to do a budget analysis. There is a requirement that the credit counseling be completed prior to filing a petition. That's the first course.

There is a second credit counseling course known as a personal financial management course that must be completed after your petition is filed with the court but before the discharge order is granted. The good news is that these courses can be taken over the internet. They don't take a long time and they are not terribly expensive. For the FIRST course I recommend Cricket Debt Counseling. They have proven to be the most "user-friendly" in my estimation, are reasonable in cost and they are available 24/7. Here is the link to the website, www.cricketdebt.com. For the SECOND course that you take after the case has been filed I recommend A 24/7 class, Inc. The website for that company is www.a247class.com.

Note that while you may have seen a debt counselor previously or perhaps had participated in a debt management plan — this is different-it is a specific set of courses you must take both before and after the case is filed in order to successfully negotiate the bankruptcy process and receive your discharge.