Why People Choose A Debt Doctor

Today, among the services helping Russian-speaking Toronto residents get free of debt, A DEBT DOCTOR offers the most effective debt-relief programs, with the least possible cost in money, time, and stress. We genuinely protect our clients from creditors, collection agencies, the courts, and unreasonable financial demands from a Trustee in Bankruptcy.

Depending on your financial situation, we'll put together the debt-reduction program that fits you best, protect your home, your car, and your other property, and, most importantly, give you back your peace of mind and stability. We'll consolidate all of your debts into a single, manageable monthly payment that fits your budget. We'll help you get your debts discharged and rebuild or improve your creditworthiness. We work closely and flexibly with a Trustee, which lets us find a positive resolution for our clients even in the most difficult, seemingly hopeless situations. We offer a flexible payment system, convenient hours (evenings and weekends), a centrally located office close to the subway and the highway, and, above all, the professionalism and results you're looking for. We've helped hundreds of clients get free of debt and start a new chapter in life, with real peace of mind and confidence in the future. If you're facing financial difficulty, don't drag out the pain - come talk to us, and we'll stop the interest piling up on your debts, get those debts discharged, and save you tens of thousands of dollars.

Answers to common questions about Bankruptcy and the Consumer Proposal (partial debt reduction).

I have a good job - if I file for bankruptcy or go through a consumer proposal, will my employer find out?

This is an entirely private process - your privacy is fully protected, and no one, not even your spouse, will find out about it unless you want them to. That said, if you let your debt situation drift and it ends up in the hands of collection agencies, be careful - they may use every means available to collect, including tactics that aren't actually legal. Come to us instead - we know how to prevent or stop collectors, court orders, and wage garnishment.

Someone told me Bankruptcy and a Consumer Proposal (partial debt reduction) are basically the same thing, and the only difference is the payments.

Many people underestimate how important and how complicated the bankruptcy process actually is, and end up in an unpleasant situation as a result. Almost everyone knows that bankruptcy lasts a minimum of 9 months, and that the record stays on your credit bureau file for 7 years from the date it's registered. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. The real difference between Bankruptcy and a Consumer Proposal isn't how long the record stays on your credit file, how long you'll have to live without credit, or how much it costs - on those points, the two are practically identical. The real difference lies in how fundamentally creditors and the trustee approach each process.

A Consumer Proposal is an agreement between the debtor and creditors, arranged through a trustee, to partially write off the debt. It's a genuine win-win: creditors recover a portion of what they're owed, and the debtor gets the bulk of their debt discharged. If your proposed amount is accepted within 45 days (setting aside the finer details), all you need to do from there is make the payments.

With Bankruptcy, the situation is the exact opposite: creditors recover nothing, and they very much want to know exactly what happened to all the money and debts the debtor declared at the time of filing. So, if you don't own a decent car, a house or condo, if you haven't made pension contributions over the past 12 months, don't have cash-value life insurance, haven't sold or transferred property, a vehicle, furniture, or private retirement savings (RRSP/RRIF) within the past 12 months or the past 5 years, haven't withdrawn unusually large amounts of cash, don't earn more than the maximum monthly income allowed for a bankrupt person, and so on - then you'll pay the trustee's minimum fee over 9 months, and you're free and clear. Everyone else has to go through a process where every account may be scrutinized, where any equity in your property can potentially be seized, where a warning may be registered on your title, or where you may be asked for a detailed accounting of misused creditor funds, or of money received from a home sale five years ago. The trustee may offer what's called a settlement - a partial payoff of the debt - or the matter could end up in court, and there's no telling what a court might decide. It's often better to simply agree to the trustee's terms. On top of that, creditors have the right to challenge your discharge from bankruptcy if they have evidence you defrauded them. And over the past 2-3 years, examinations by the Registrar's office have become significantly more common - a three-hour interview about how you used your money, full of tricky questions. Just imagine, for a second, going into that whole process completely unprepared! Obviously, by the end of it, your disappointment would know no bounds. Our company's help can be absolutely essential here. One more thing: once you've filed for bankruptcy, you have to see it through - you can't change your mind or back out partway through. You'll either be discharged from it, or you'll remain in that status until the debts owed are paid off. With a Consumer Proposal, on the other hand, you can always withdraw your proposal to creditors if you decide to.

Why should I use your services instead of going directly to a trustee?

The key difference between our company and a trustee is that we work in the debtor's interest. We know every detail of the process, all the points that matter, and how to prepare your paperwork correctly to avoid problems down the road. It matters enormously to us that your minimum proposal to creditors gets accepted, or that you're successfully discharged from bankruptcy. Make the right decision - use our services, and we'll protect your interests.

What happens to my property if I go through one of these programs?

Rest assured, no one will take away your home or your leased or financed car, unless you decide to give them up yourself. Under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, so-called secured debts don't get discharged through bankruptcy or a consumer proposal. On the contrary, a trustee will actually recommend that you keep up your insurance and your regular payments on secured debts. What the trustee and your creditors will care about is whether you have equity in your property (the difference between your home's market value and your mortgage balance), and whether that equity can be converted into cash to pay down your debts. Under a consumer proposal, that difference, minus all the potential costs of selling the property, gets added to your total debt amount. Under bankruptcy, that amount has to be paid, and until it is, the trustee registers and holds a warning on title, giving them the right to control your property until the debt is paid in full. So, if you handle this without professional guidance, you're left with only two choices: sell the property, or pay out the equity. We resolve this in our clients' favor - our clients get to avoid the fate of those who naively believed they could sort out their financial problems on their own. Don't make your life more complicated and stressful than it needs to be - talk to the professionals.

If you have questions about anything discussed here, or your debt situation is weighing on you, don't wait - call A Debt Doctor right now. We'll help you resolve your problems.

Stay healthy, and stay debt-free!