Chapter 13 may be a good choice for California residents facing foreclosure

Bankruptcy attorney in California Bankryptcy lawyer| Law office www.BANKRUPTCYATTORNEYINCALIFORNIA.COM

Here are the foreclosure statistics which were recently released by foreclosures.com, a foreclosure radar website.
The golden state of California heads the country up with foreclosure filings, and Riverside County as well as the greater LA basin has been hit hard. Statistics show 65,208 filings or 5.7 per 1,000 homes, and California also leads the nation with respect to filings for auction with 33,045 or 2.9 out of every 1,000 homes. While these numbers may not be alarming the truth of the matter filing chapter 13 and restructuring one’s debt might be the key to saving one’s home from foreclosure. “Not only can we help stop the foreclosure process with bankruptcy but we can typically eliminate a 2nd lien if it’s underwater”, says California bankruptcy attorney James Zhou.
Mr. Zhou, senior partner at Law offices of Zhou & Chini goes on to say “ I have never seen such a perfect storm as we have in Riverside, Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties to help home owners restore their lost equity by eliminating their 2nd mortgages with a chapter 13 bankruptcy”. If the properties 2nd lien is under water, it’s unsecured and we typically can eliminate it, says Zhou. A perfect example is a client of ours from Temecula who bought their home for $350,000 in 2005, when the property value went up to $500,000 they took out a $100,000 2nd mortgage to add a pool and bonus room. Needless to say, the homeowner has suffered a loss of income and the property value has dropped to $320,000 leaving the 2nd mortgage unsecured. In this case we are able to file a chapter 13 and strip the 2nd lien in addition to eliminating the client’s credit card and medical debt. They get to keep their home and when property values restore so will the equity in their home. “It’s the perfect storm”!
The top three counties with pre-foreclosure (NOD) filings include Los Angeles California, which has 12,533 filings or 4 per 1,000 homes. This is up by a huge 97% from 6,367 for the same time last year. It is followed by Cook County Illinois with 9,005 filings or 4.6 per 1,000 homes, up a big 53% from last year. Let’s not forget Florida whose Miami-Dade County trails in third place with 8,684 filings or 11.2 pre-foreclosures for every 1,000 homes in the state.
Foreclosure statistics for counties leading the nation in auction filings are:
• Maricopa, Arizona which had 6,501 filings or 5.7 per 1,000 homes, up by 119% over the same period last year.

• Dallas, Texas with 6,279 filings or 7.8 per 1,000 homes in the state, up by just 8% from last year.

• Los Angeles, California which also had 6,242 filings or 2 per 1,000 homes, which turned out to be a whopping 217% higher compared to last year.
The California real estate market has always been a hot bed for refinancing and hybrid loans due to the income verses property value ratio and the need for more bankruptcy attorneys is growing. California residents jumped on the home ownership band wagon fast; now many are faced with foreclosure due to various reasons. Getting help from a bankruptcy lawyer now is more present than ever to avoid foreclosure. A knowledgeable bankruptcy lawyer filing a chapter 13 bankruptcy will give someone the opportunity to restructure their debt and repay a small percentage of their secured and unsecured debt over time, typically 3 -5 years. If you are current on your mortgage a chapter 7 bankruptcy allows one to completely eliminate their debt, keep their home, and get their life back on track. As long as the 1st mortgage is current or brought current, clients can keep their home and eliminate all their unsecured debt with a chapter 7 if they pass the means test. Bankruptcy chapter 7 or chapter 13 can be a powerful tool, allowing homeowners to reaffirm debt and in many cases keep what they want. For solid legal advice from an experienced bankruptcy attorney call the Law Offices of Zhou & Chini today at 888.901.3440 or visit us on line at

Bankruptcy attorney in California Bankryptcy lawyer| Law office www.BANKRUPTCYATTORNEYINCALIFORNIA.COM.

Zhou & Chini are California Bankruptcy Lawyers.