Online Credit Counseling Courses

There are a lot of websites that provide both the prefiling course and the post meeting course:

This is not an exhaustive list but is intended to give you some options and a convenient way to familiarize yourself with the process.

Wu Law Firm, LLC is not compensated in any way if you take the courses from any of the websites listed above.

"In Person" Credit Counseling Courses

If you feel you would learn more from taking the courses in person, that is perfectly fine and you will be given a certificate upon completion of the course. Here are a couple websites where you can obtain more information about "in person" courses in the Des Moines area:

Consumer Credit of Des Moines

Consumer Credit Counseling

If you prefer going this route, you may want to enroll before even scheduling a consultation because these times are fixed and not "on demand" like the online courses.

Steps Of Chapter 7 Filing

1. Before filing any papers with the Court, you will need to attend a "credit counseling course" - the idea behind this is that you will learn about your options and maybe decide that filing for Chapter 7 is not the best course of action. You will be given a certificate when you complete the course and you will submit this to the court along with your initial papers to prove you completed the course

2A. Fill out forms listing all your personal assets and listing all your creditors and outstanding debts (This is not as bad as it may sound, you will not list individual articles of clothing for instance - it is more a case of determining an aggregate fair market value for all your clothing put together

2B. Along with listing your assets/creditors, you will need to document your income over the last six months (This includes pay stubs and you will also need to submit last year's tax return) This is necessary because in 2005 a federal law was passed that makes qualifying for chapter 7 entirely contingent on income

3. File all the paperwork with the federal bankruptcy court. Once the paperwork is accepted, a creditor meeting (341 meeting) where you, your creditors and a trustee appointed by the Court date need to attend. This will be set roughly a month in the future. This meeting gives your creditors an opportunity to make a case for why their loan should not be discharged.

4. After the meeting, you will have to go through another course and submit your certification with the Court.

If these steps go according to "standard procedure" your debts will be discharged.

If You Do Not Qualify For Chapter 7, Chapter 13 Has Essentially The Same Sequence Of Steps. The Main Difference Is What Happens At The Creditor Meeting And The Fact That You Do Not Have Your Debts Discharged, But Make Payments To A US Trustee After The Meeting

Call For Free Consultation

(515) - 974 - 7327

Evening and Weekend Appointments Available

We are a debt relief agency. We can help people to file for Bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy Code.

Anything presented on this website is intended for informational purposes only. Nothing should be interpreted as legal advice and you should consult an attorney if you want specific legal advice for your particular situation.