Summary:Daniel Colton fell delinquent on his mortgage with Bank of America in 2009 and began considering filing bankruptcy, but instead sought to refinance or obtain a loan modification. That process stretch for several years, during which time Bank of America entered into the National Mortgage Settlement. Bank of America then in 2012, despite previous indications that it was willing to refinance the mortgage, declined to do so. Mr. Colton again indicated that he intended to declare bankruptcy. Bank of America encouraged Mr.
Abstract:
A drawback of student loans is that a debtor must show “undue hardship” to discharge them in bankruptcy. An advantage of student loans is that most of them may be repaid using income-driven repayment (“IDR”) plans, under which the debtor can satisfy the obligation by paying a share of income over a specified time, even if the payments do not reduce the loan balance to zero.
This Article addresses how the availability of IDR should affect the analysis of undue hardship in student-loan bankruptcy.
Debt in America Abstract:
Debt can be constructive, allowing people to build equity in homes or finance education, but it can also burden families into the future. Total debt is driven by mortgage debt; both are highly concentrated in high-cost housing markets, mostly along the coasts. Among Americans with a credit file, average total debt was $53,850 in 2013, but was substantially higher for people with a mortgage ($209,768) than people without a mortgage ($11,592). Non-mortgage debt, in contrast, is more spatially dispersed.
Summary:
Epes was the guarantor of a lease on behalf of the lessee, CRC Management. CRC eventually sold its assets to Fuddruckers. In April 2010, Fuddruckers filed bankruptcy. In July 2010, Epes brought an action for a declaratory judgment that he no longer had any liability under the guaranty, however summary judgment was granted to the Defendants.
The Court of Appeals affirmed the summary judgment for the defendants, finding that the lease included the filing of bankruptcy.
Summary: Relying on In re Beaudet, 455 B.R. 671, 673 (Bankr. M.D. Tenn. 2011), the bankruptcy court held that while Ocwen was entitled to include future escrow amounts in the on-going monthly payment, the pre-petition escrow shortage should instead be included in the arrearage claim.
