The Best Thing You Can Do to Avoid Bankruptcy

Attorney Carmen Dellutri Breaks It Down

A couple months ago, I reached out to bankruptcy attorney Carmen Dellutri of Dellutri Law Group to talk about the most dreaded of debt scenarios: bankruptcy.

We discussed the most common reasons for bankruptcy, the difference between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13, and the debts that aren’t wiped away during the process. Check out the entire interview on “The HartBeat Show” podcast or the video on my Facebook by searching “Tim Hart — Loan Officer.” But for this quick breakdown, I thought it might be most useful to talk about what many debtors have weighing on their minds — how do you avoid bankruptcy?

“When you come to the realization that [bankruptcy] might be in your future, that’s the time to sit down with one of the attorneys and say, ‘Help me with my plan,’” Carmen says. “It’s better to establish the relationship with a bankruptcy attorney before you need them and not wait to the last minute. Because if you wait until the last minute, there are things we could’ve done to help,” which is either to prepare for the bankruptcy or avoid it altogether.

“Half the people who come to see me never have to file bankruptcy,” Carmen says. Whenever possible, a good bankruptcy attorney will do everything within their power to steer you away from declaring unless it legitimately is your best option. With most attorneys, that first advisory meeting, where they’re likely to give you advice on how not to declare, is completely free!

The main reason that people who are struggling still avoid seeing an attorney for advice, according to Carmen, is pride. “It’s good to have pride, and it’s good to have the ability to work and make money and pay your debts,” he says. “But when you jeopardize your family’s future, you’ve got to call into question if pride is more important than the future.” As he puts it, a good attorney won’t try to make that decision for you. They’ll just give you your best options for financial planning and allow you to forge your own path.

So in short, if you’re worried you might be on the way to bankruptcy, get an attorney now — not later! Give Carmen Dellutri a call at 239-939-0900 to set up a free consultation.