As a rule, you should not file a bankruptcy if you foresee you will have to incur more debts into the future. Same goes for the person who only has a small debt. If you are thinking about filing, you should ask yourself if it is better to wait when you are not piling any more debts, and if the current ones are heavy enough. If you are in danger of losing property you cannot afford to lose, say a car or home, then all the more it makes sense to file.
Filing in the state of Illinois will mean you have to be mindful of a lot of factors:
Fees
In Illinois, the costs are $274 to file for a Chapter 13 and $299 to file for a Chapter 7. The fee is the same for either a single person or a married couple. But always remember this is apart from you attorney’s fees. Also take into consideration whether filing a bankruptcy will cost more than you actual present debt.
Decide
Decide on whether you will file a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. While Chapter 7 discharges most of your debts, obtaining it would not be easy, because the state have some restrictive criteria for its applicants. For a single person, the state requires that you have an income of $52,597 or less, $68,075 for a family of two, $80,344 for a family of three and $96,695 for a family of four. Over that and your choice may have to be Chapter 13, where extension of repayment is granted, but not discharge altogether.
Prepare
Prepare initial paperwork. You can download files beforehand from the government site and prepare them for your lawyer, ready for submission. This would not only cut back on your application time, but also educate and resolve you in filing for bankruptcy. Ready yourself for the questions that will be inevitably asked. You need to be forthright with your answers, working in coordination with your bankruptcy counsel.
Filing bankruptcy in Illinois is perhaps the most legal and protected way you can avail for yourself during these times of need.
Sources:
http://www.ehow.com/how_4679587_file-bankruptcy-illinois.html
http://www.illinoislegalaid.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.dsp_content&contentID=16
http://www.bankruptcyinformation.com/IL.htm
