Beware of Business Credit Cards: A Consumer Protection Loophole - DailyFinance

Beware of Business Credit Cards: A Consumer Protection Loophole - DailyFinance

The credit cards companies are at it again! Every chance they get, they try to keep Americans in a credit card debtor's prison. When Congress changed the laws regarding interest rates, the banks looked for ways to go back to the "good old days" of knee-jerk hikes in interest rates and the ability to run interest rates up so high that consumers will never get out of debt. Well they found it. By offering a "business" credit card to someone, even if they do not own their own business, the credit card companies and banks can do just that. If you miss a payment, fall behind in your payments, business gets slow, or you simply over extend yourself, the bank come flying in with higher interest rate hies to save the day for themselves and put consumers back under their thumbs.

Remember, do not over extend your credit. Do not spend more than you make. Begin living within your means. If you do this, you will not have to imprisoned by the credit card companies and banks. If however, you have found yourself in the never ending vicious cycle of making the minimum payment on your credit cards, your home is in foreclosure, or your car has been repossessed, there may be help in the federal courts. Nearly half of American families most likely cannot come up with $2,000 in 30 days. This is raising concerns about the financial fragility of many households in America. The biggest problem is that most Americans are working to pay off the credit cards they began to live off of when they were out of work. The credit card companies do not care if you you do have enough money at the end of the month to pay the utility bills, feed the family, make th car payment so you can get to work to make money to pay the bills. It becomes a never ending vicious cycle. In the end there is help.

As an Orlando bankruptcy attorney, I have come to understand just how difficult it will be for you to make that call to me about filing a bankruptcy case.  Almost everyone of my clients has said at one point things like “I never thought I would be in this position” or “this is the most embarrassing and difficult decision I have ever made.”  I want to reassure you that when you contact me, my staff and I will treat you with courtesy and respect that you deserve and that we will treat the information you provide to us with strict confidence.

Call me today to schedule your free consultation. 407-877-7317.

Woman Rushed To Hospital After Riding Disney's Space Mountain - News Story - WFTV Orlando

Woman Rushed To Hospital After Riding Disney's Space Mountain - News Story - WFTV Orlando

No Principal Reduction From Your Bank on Loan Modifications, Then Give It Back!

There was proposal among the States Attorney Generals to settle claims against the five major mortgage lenders including Bank of America, Wells Fargo, CitiMortgage and others where they would have been required to begin granting principal reductions as part of the mortgage modification process. This is part of a proposed settlement agreement as part of a lawsuit filed against the lenders for their failure to grant modifications, as well as the improper mortgage foreclosure processes which have been going on around the country. As expected several Republican Attorney Generals and several Republican Congressman and Congresswomen objected to the proposed requirement to grant principal reductions. In a ludicrous statement, Bob Davis, an executive with the American bankers Association, the trade group representing many of the lenders and taking positions adverse to homeownership stated that principal reductions do not work.

Here at the Cressman Law Firm, it is my firm that while this position "does not work for the banks" it will help most homeowners remain in their homes. As it now stands, most homeowners have no incentive to remain in their homes and take stock in their communities. Ask yourselves, "Would I pay XX dollars for a home which is worth significantly less than the XX dollars the loan the bank is asking me to reaffirm?" In most cases the banks demand that borrowers carry the burden of keeping the principal balance at the current amount and only lowering the interest rate, and in many cases extending the terms of the loan, etc. In the end, borrowers will end up paying more for the home by paying back loans which are higher than the value of the homes, for longer periods of time. Why would anyone pay double the price for anything and then agree to pay interest on the loan for a longer period of time. Let's face it. Property values will NEVER return to pre-bubble burst values. The only ones who made money were the realtors, mortgage brokers and unscrupulous lenders who handed money out as if it were candy on Halloween night. prices became inflated and banks and appraisers and lenders and brokers kept telling us the values would continue to increase. Enough said.

The ones left holding the burden are the homeowners who are far more than their houses are worth. And now the banks want those same homeowners to bear the sole cost of fixing the problem. Granting principal reductions does make sense. It makes sense for everyone involved, the homeowner and the lender included. If your lender is refusing to grant a principal reduction and your homeis worth far less than what you owe, bankruptcy may be an way out. Surrender your home to the bank and let them have the headaches of trying to sell it for what is owed on the home. They never will and maybe someday they will look back and say Mr. Davis was wrong and they should have granted principal reductions to provide incentives for people to remain their homes. As it now stands there is no incentive.

If you think bankruptcy may be an answer for you, call my office at 407-877-7317 and schedule a free no obligation consultation to see if bankruptcy may help you get a Fresh Start On Life and Begin the Road to Recovery.

My office files cases for people residing in Orange, Lake, Seminole and the surrounding Central Florida communities including Orlando, Pine Hills, Ocoee, Dr. Phillips, Windermere, Winter Garden, Oakland, Clermont, Minneolla, Mascotte, Tavares, Monteverde, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, Casselberry, Longwodd, and Apopka.
Federal Law requires that I provide you with the following notice: "My office is a debt relief agency. I help people file for bankruptcy relief under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code."

Unemployment Benefits About to Be Lost by Millions

Number of the Week: Millions Set to Lose Unemployment Benefits - Real Time Economics - WSJ

As reported by Mark Whitehouse of the Wall Street Journal, millions of out of work Americans may soon have more problems to deal with. According to the article and reports fom the US Labor Department, millions of Americans are about to find themselves without any means of support and will still have to find a way to pay the rent, electric, and other utility bills without any means to do so. Despite claims by major news media outlets and the government that job growth is getting better, the number of unemployed persons who are not receiving any benefits is now over 5 million Americans who are out of work and having a hard time finding work. This is an increase of over 1 million since April 2010.

Many Americans began collecting Unemployment Compensation Benefits in August 2009. The limit on the number of weeks an out of work employee can collect is 99 weeks. Most people can collect up to 99 weeks of benefits in one or more of the following programs: 26 weeks from regular unemployment insurance which is from the State of Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation Unemployment Compensation Program for Floridians, after that you may be eligible and receive 53 weeks of Federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation, and then another 20 weeks of Federal-State Extended Benefits. However, once the 99 weeks of benefits are gone, there is generally nothing left to fall back on. The end point for those who started receiving benefits in August of 2009 is sometime in June/July 2011. As the date looms near, people may become more desperate to hold on to what they have. Despite losing benefits, the mortgage companies will want to be paid, the credit card and collection agencies will demand payments, and all the while, people's stress levels will increase as their health may start to deteriorate.

And will all the bads news the Florida Legislature made the news worse. On mostly a party line vote, the Republican led Florida Legislature voted to cut the number of weeks an out-of-work Florida may receive unemployment compensation benefits. The Florida Senate passed its bill and the House is now battling over compromises. In the end, however, the residents of Florida will lose. The Legislature now wnats to tie the number of weeks which benefits are available to unemployment rate. The higher the rate, the longer the benefits, the lower the rate of unemployment, the lower the number of weeks of eligibility in the State of Florida. As a professor at the University of Florida once told me, "Anyone can lie with statistics. It just depends on how you look at the numbers." Once the Chamber of Commerce, and similar organizations skew the numbers to lower the unemployment rate, the benefits will be shortened and people will once again have to chose between food and shelter. This may sound drastic and it is!

One answer is simple - Bankruptcy. In most cases, Chapter 7 Bankruptcy may be the answer to wipe out the debt and start over. Chapter 13 may be the answer for once-out-of-work people have now found a job. Many people facing a mountain of debt will never be able to re-pay the debt as the credit card companies increase fees, interest rates, and begin to sue to get judgments so they can garnish wages, checking accounts, savings accounts, or seize and sell personal property of debtors in Florida.

If you think Bankruptcy may be the answer for you, call Mark at the Cressman Law Firm today. 407-877-7317. We always offer a free initial consultation to see if Bankruptcy may be the answer for you. Call Today before the credit card companies take what little benefits you may have left by garnishing your checking and savings accounts.

Fatal crash S.R. 535: Kissimmee man struck, killed while trying to walk across S.R. 535 - OrlandoSentinel.com

Fatal crash S.R. 535: Kissimmee man struck, killed while trying to walk across S.R. 535 - OrlandoSentinel.com

Please remember when riding, walking or traveling b means other than a car, to wear bright clothing, and preferable clothing with reflectiveness properties when riding a bicycle on or near the roadways.