Clearwater Bankruptcy Lawyer Jay Weller and The Weller Legal Group have been serving the Tampa Bay area:
- Clearwater,
- Port Richey,
- Lakeland,
- and Tampa, since 1993.
We provide legal services to help consumers resolve debt issues. We are the only Law Firm in the Tampa Bay area that provides every service related to debt, including:
- Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
- Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
- Corporate Reorganizations through Chapter 11
- Creditor Harassment Matters
- Settlements
- Loan Modifications
- Mediation
- Foreclosure Defense
- Credit Repair
Our Mission is to provide our clients with the best representation possible, in a manner that is both friendly and competent. Jay Weller Legal Group strives to give each client the best representation possible and afford each client the honesty, dignity, and respect they need and deserve in a difficult time.
Our firm’s competent Clearwater bankruptcy lawyer will patiently analyze your entire case and suggest the best remedy for your current situation. The Jay Weller Legal Group provides such a wide array of services that we are certain to have a program that will suit your needs.
Types of Bankruptcy & Alternatives to Bankruptcy
Although the bad effects of Bankruptcy are often oversold or exaggerated in the popular media, Bankruptcy, either a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, Chapter 11, or Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, can remedy many problems for those confronted with overwhelming Debts, Bankruptcy is not always the best solution. At Jay Weller Legal Group we have many alternatives to Bankruptcy that assist our Clients who are confronted with Debts.
Foreclosure Defense
In Florida, we have many distressed homeowners. For many of these homeowners, they have few outstanding Debts other than their Mortgage. Many have tried to negotiate with the Lender to attempt Loan Modifications or other relief. For a homeowner facing Foreclosure, Jay Weller Legal Group is one of the pioneers in the area of Foreclosure Defense.
When a homeowner receives Service of Foreclosure papers, he must act fast because he may receive a Default in as little as 20 days. A Default essentially waives any Defenses or Counterclaims the homeowner may have against the Lender, as well as allows the Lender to rapidly Foreclose and take the house from the Borrower. Foreclosure Defense entails, as the name implies, Defending the Foreclosure on behalf of the Borrower or homeowner.
A Foreclosure that is not defended may be taken from the Borrower of the homeowner in as little as two or three months. Foreclosure Defense permits the homeowner not only to raise whatever Claims or Defenses he may have, some of which may have given rise to the Foreclosure in the first place. Second, Foreclosure Defense allows our office, with your participation, to attempt to secure a beneficial Mortgage Modification, that allows you to retain your home permanently if you so choose.
Depending upon whether your Mortgage is a government-backed or Private Loan, our office has been successful in helping our Clients receive Loan Modifications. There are many types of Mortgages. Some Mortgages allow us to arrange Principal Reductions, and others do not. Many Mortgages are eligible for lower monthly payments, reduced interest, and forgiveness. It is best to come to our office for a free consultation with Mr. Weller.
Settlements
Jay Weller Legal Group also helps many of our Clients through Settlements. Numerous companies advertise Settlements in which the Customer makes monthly payments and when enough money is accrued, the Settlement Company promises to disburse such monies by paying a one-time payment to that Creditor. Such payment is less than the Creditor is owed. However, the Creditor agrees to accept less than full payment, in Full Satisfaction of the Debt.
The companies that offer Debt Settlement Services through this method are often fraudulent. For the companies that are not fraudulent, the method that they use to Settle Debts is flawed. Because such companies demand such a low monthly payment, relative to the Debt, by the time the customer makes enough payments to have sufficient money for Settlement, the Debt is so seriously delinquent that it often already has gone to an Attorney for prosecution of a lawsuit.
The proper way to Settle an outstanding Unsecured Debt, such as a credit card is to make a lump-sum payment of anywhere from thirty to sixty percent of the balance, at approximately six months delinquent. If the Borrower is unable to Settle his Unsecured Debt in this fashion, it is best to look to other alternatives. Stay away from the “Debt Settlement Companies”.
Credit Counseling Service
Julian Consumer Counseling Service, a sister company of Jay Weller Legal Group, has been providing Credit Counseling services since 1997. Credit Counseling is a program in which a Credit Counseling Company with 501(c)(3) Status, may consolidate all your Credit Cards and some other Unsecured Debts, into a lowered monthly payment with a reduced interest rate. Through Credit Counseling, Julian Consumer Counseling may also re-age your account. To re-age an account means that after the Borrower makes three to six payments, the Lender will reflect that Account current on his credit and credit report.
Credit Counseling is still a good program for many of our Clients. However, the Concessions made by Creditors are not as beneficial as when Julian Consumer first started in 1997. If you make an appointment with our office, we can calculate your monthly payment and interest rate, based on the particular Creditors you may have.
Credit Repair
Credit Repair is a program that is beneficial either after the consummation of a Bankruptcy as a device to re-establish Credit or secondly, as a means to improve the Credit of a Non-Bankruptcy Debtor. Depending upon the age of the Debt, and other considerations, bad remarks may be removed from one’s Credit. Duplicate Remarks or Multiple Inquiries may also be diminished or eliminated. Good remarks may be added to one’s credit report. Mr. Weller would be happy to discuss with you the many ways we can together, improve your Credit and Credit Report.
Creditor sometimes, in their zeal to collect a Debt, will commit Acts that violate Federal or State Debt Collection Statutes. Jay Weller Legal Group will prosecute Creditors who continuously Harass our Clients. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and its Florida equivalent, prohibit certain behaviors by Creditors or Debt Collectors. A Debt Collector may not call or contact a Borrower before a certain hour in the morning or after a certain hour at night. The Collector may not use:
- profane language,
- make unenforceable Threats such as promising Arrest or Imprisonment,
- contact family, friends, or neighbors,
- contact you at work if your employer does not invite such phone calls,
- and several other prohibitions.
The Damages can be quite substantial, depending upon the egregiousness of the conduct of the Debt Collector.
If you are interested in any of these alternatives to Bankruptcy or have any questions please contact Jay Weller Legal Group today at 1-800-407- 3328 (DEBT) for a free consultation with Mr. Weller.
