If you’re dealing with financial problems, you’re not alone. As a bankruptcy lawyer from a firm like the Law Offices of Neil Crane can explain, there are many life-changing circumstances that could lead to bankruptcy, and sometimes it’s completely unavoidable.

• Medical care: In matters of life and death, some people end up with life and debt. In the United States, costly medical bills are a fact of life – so if a person has recently battled through a major medical crisis, their fight isn’t over until the last cent is paid. Unfortunately, this usually means going into debt. Paying off medical bills is a major hurdle that can get in the way of your physical (and mental) recovery, and sometimes declaring bankruptcy is the only way you can get out from under the burden.
• Keeping your home: Nobody wants to deal with foreclosure – especially the person living in the property. If you’re facing a foreclosure, you’re facing catastrophe: You’ll be kicked out of your own home, and if you have a family to look after, that means they’ll be kicked out with you. If your children are attending a school close to your house, you may also end up impeding their education. It’s a financial emergency, and declaring bankruptcy can keep your family in your home and your kids in school.
• Repossessed vehicles: Our cars and trucks are our lifelines. We use them to get to work, to get to school, to get our groceries, and to get around in general. Without reliable transportation, you may end up struggling to get to where you need to be, and this can have wide repercussions. Arriving late for work too many times can put your employment at risk, and this can cause a whole cascade of other problems for you in the future. If you have to declare bankruptcy to avoid a repossession, you’re not alone.
• Saving your marriage: It’s no secret that fights over finances can cause pain and anxiety, with the potential to fracture a relationship. If you and your partner have been driven to extreme measures to stay together (such as moving in with your extended family, and sacrificing a living arrangement that kept you both happy) you might need to take serious action to keep your relationship stable and healthy. This might involve declaring bankruptcy: While it can negatively affect your credit, you and your spouse can come to an agreement that can preserve one or both of your financial situations.

How can bankruptcy help me?

If any of these situations seem familiar, you know what it’s like to be slowly crushed by debt and endless payments. Bankruptcy can be a way out from under debt, but it’s not a decision that should be taken lightly. The above examples illustrate how bankruptcy can help, but also the situations in which declaring bankruptcy is an adequate response.

When it comes to declaring bankruptcy, you should contact a bankruptcy lawyer who can answer any questions you may have. Whether you’ll declare Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, whether your situation warrants declaring bankruptcy in the first place, and what your roadmap to financial recovery will look like – it’s important to know how to proceed, and it’s important to contact the experts.