1. There is no such thing as a bankruptcy just for those who did everything right. Let’s get this straight, bankruptcy is designed for any debtor who is drowning in debt and can no longer afford to pay his/her bills. It doesn’t matter if you made foolish decisions in the past or if you did everything right. The law does not discriminate against those who have made foolish financial mistakes–a matter of fact that’s why bankruptcy is there to forgive our debts which are sometimes due to past foolish mistakes. We all make mistakes!
2. The bankruptcy code has no expectation that you will sacrifice your safety and well being to pay credit card debt or other bills. Don’t ever let any creditor convince you that you should go without necessary medical treatments, food, heat or shelter to pay them. That’s just plain crazy! If you find yourself sacrificing the basics to pay a bill then it is probably time to consider bankruptcy.
3. Filing bankruptcy will not destroy your non-filing spouse’s credit. Because of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act your bankruptcy filing will not appear on your spouse’s separate debt accounts. However, if you have a significant amount of joint accounts you may want to consider filing bankruptcy together.