No certain amount.

Answer Applies to: Maryland
Replied: 10/17/2011

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That is an individual question. I did one once for 3400.00 for someone on disability who just wanted to put it behind her.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/11/2011

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If you cannot pay your debts without causing hardship for you and your dependents, it is probably time to consider bankruptcy . However, there are other factors to consider or options such as trying to negotiate with creditors . Bankruptcy involves personal evaluation. Consult a bankruptcy attorney about your case.

Answer Applies to: Minnesota
Replied: 10/11/2011

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Bankruptcy and how much debt you have is really not important. What matters is ones ability to pay debt.

Answer Applies to: Indiana
Replied: 10/11/2011

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Excellent question. I ask prospective clients "Is there a reasonable possibility you will be able to pay these debts in a reasonable time frame?" If the client will not be able to pay the debts in a reasonable time, say five years, it makes sense to file.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/11/2011

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There is no minimum debt amount to file bankruptcy.

Answer Applies to: New York
Replied: 10/11/2011

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The amount of debt is not the determining factor, the inability to pay debt is

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/11/2011

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That really depends on your situation. Some feel theat BK is the only option with $20,000 in debt, others can handle $100,000 in debt before they feel in over their head. Often its a matter of income levels dropping below previous levels and you are unable to continue to keep up with the payments anymore. Others file to keep a home. You need to speak with an attorney to determine if its right for you or if there is another option that can work better for you.

Answer Applies to: Utah
Replied: 10/11/2011

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That depends on your situation, if you make $10,000 a year and are never likely to make any more $5000 is huge, if you make $100,000, you probably wouldn't even consider it for $5,000. Remember you can only file chapter 7 bankruptcy every 8 years, so you don't want to file on some relatively small amount if there is any other option. You might really need it further down the line, for example if you got sick and ran up large medical bills you can't pay.

Answer Applies to: Michigan
Replied: 10/11/2011

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That depends on your income. A person who makes very little should file for bankruptcy even owing a few thousand dollars while a person making a large income may be able to pay the debts. There is no legal minimum but the cost of the attorney's fee must be considered. If you cannot pay your debts now or in the near future then bankruptcy should be considered as an option. Generally most people have over $8,000 in debt when they file a Chapter 7 case but a person living only on a small pension or social security benefits may decide to file having less than that in debts to end lawsuits and creditor harrassment, particularly if that person's credit is already bad as in most cases.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There is no debt requirement as the ability to repay debt varies amongst all people. Basically, if your unsecured debt is more than 30 percent of your annual gross income, then you cannot afford to repay your debt and should look to file bankruptcy.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There is no official "low point" for the amount of debt to be able to file a bankruptcy case. Care should be taken, however, to consult with a bankruptcy attorney to evaluate your eligibility to file based on other limitations factors (such as the applicable Means Test and whether you have prior bankruptcies), as well as whether any of your real or personal property would be at risk of liquidation if you filed a case. There are also many other issues to review with a bankruptcy attorney, including certain events which may have occurred in your financial affairs during at least the previous two (2) years (Did you sell/transfer property ? Liquidate a retirement account? Receive and spend a large income tax return, a settlement, or inheritance?, for example). These issues can all have an effect on your bankruptcy case and your ability to receive a Discharge Order.

Answer Applies to: Ohio
Replied: 10/10/2011

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Like many issues related to bankruptcy, the advice is never one size fits all. The amount of debt that makes bankruptcy a make sense is entirely a personal one. There is no minimum amount of debt necessary before you can consider bankruptcy (although for certain types of bankruptcy, such as Chapter 13, there are maximum amounts of debt). Most people begin to consider bankruptcy when they are unable to meet their current obligations (i.e., normal monthly living expenses) while also paying their minimum payments to service your debt. I might suggest that you may want to consider it if you can only pay your minimum payments and are not able to regularly reduce your debt load. As you might guess, the amount of debt that a small shopkeeper might consider to be too much to handle is likely less than the amount that the CEO of Macy's might consider to be too much. If you are struggling with your debts, it makes sense to sit down with a professional to discuss how a bankruptcy will affect you, your debt and your assets.

Answer Applies to: Massachusetts
Replied: 10/10/2011

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It doesn't matter what you owe. The issue is can you meet your expenses including payments on your debt.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There are no debt limits.

Answer Applies to: Michigan
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There's no threshold of debt to file a chapter 7 bankruptcy whether it's warranted is relative to your income. Chapter 13 has debt limits. Meaning too much debt can disqualify you.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There is no set minimum amount in the statute books. The only practical minimum is if it costs more to hire the lawyer than the amount of debt to be discharged. For consumers, if some cards are already in default, things start getting tight when debt is around half of the annual gross income. By the time total liability equals about one year's gross income, it is close to impossible to pay bills due to creditors not wanting to work things out, default interest percentages, late fees, over limit fees, etc. Much depends on the type of debt as well, since some debts can survive bankruptcy. Sometimes it can depend on means test results, or if too much excess income is available at the end of the month, as a good faith issue.

Answer Applies to: New Jersey
Replied: 10/10/2011

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When filing Bankruptcy in Colorado, there is no minimum debt limit. As a practical matter chapter 7 bankruptcy is rarely filed with unsecured dischargeable debts under $10,000.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/10/2011

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Bankruptcy is often defined as the inability to pay one's debts as they become due. So, there is no magic number. $5,000 got you might be the equivalent of $5,000,000 to someone else, it depends on your income/expenses. If you're talking an extremely low amount, then obviously it might be better to at least try to settle these debts, but I don't know how feasible that is in your situation because I don't know your situation.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There is no minimum. Whatever you cannot pay will be considered.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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It's not so much your total debt that makes a Chapter 7 bankruptcy seem sensible. It's more often the ration of the debt to your income. If you make $40k per year, then $5k doesn't seem like a reason to file bankruptcy, unless there ate extenuating circumstances. On the other hand, a person that makes $10k per year would probably find $5k of unsecured credit cards to be crushing. All things are relative. So, go see an experienced bankruptcy attorney and get their opinion. Many attorneys do not charge for the initial consultation.

Answer Applies to: Ohio
Replied: 10/10/2011

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Whatever is it that you cannot afford on your income will be considered.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There is not a minimum amount of debt that is required for bankruptcy. You need to consult for free with a bankruptcy attorney so they can analyze all your options and tell you whether bankruptcy is a good option for you or whether you have other alternatives.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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There is no minimum amount of debt that must be owed to qualify for bankruptcy. However, you should consider whether bankruptcy is needed. For one thing, you can only file bankruptcy once every 8 years. If the debts are small you might want to consider a consumer credit payment plan such as the Money Management International.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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For a chapter 7 bankruptcy, it isn't the amount of debt but your income relative to expenses and your ability to pay those debts.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/10/2011

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