Reseda Debt Relief Lawyer
Debt relief in Reseda does not always mean bankruptcy, and it does not always mean a settlement either; the right answer depends on what kind of debt you carry, what a creditor has already done, and what you own. Wadhwani & Shanfeld is a consumer bankruptcy and debt relief law firm that handles Chapter 7, Chapter 13, debt settlement, foreclosure defense, wage garnishment, creditor lawsuits, and IRS tax debt for people in Reseda and across Los Angeles County and the rest of Southern California.
A Reseda debt relief lawyer earns the title by sorting out which tool fits, not by selling the same one to everybody. A person with a collection suit about to go to default needs something different from a homeowner with a recorded notice of default, and both need something different from a renter whose paycheck is being garnished. The sections below walk through those situations, the deadlines that actually govern them, and the court that handles bankruptcy cases for Reseda residents.
Why Choose Wadhwani & Shanfeld for Debt Relief in Reseda
Wadhwani & Shanfeld has helped more than 30,000 individuals and families get out from under debt, and the firm is led by two Board-Certified Specialists in Consumer Bankruptcy through the American Board of Certification: founding shareholders Raj Wadhwani and Greg Shanfeld. Together the firm’s lawyers bring more than 90 years of combined legal experience to cases from Reseda, Northridge, Van Nuys, Woodland Hills, and the broader San Fernando Valley, as well as Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties. Because the firm handles both bankruptcy and the alternatives to it, the recommendation you get is based on your situation rather than on the only service a firm happens to sell.
Raj Wadhwani is a Southwestern Law School graduate who helped pilot the Best Case Bankruptcy software in 1998 and was the first attorney to file a bankruptcy case electronically in the Central District of California. Greg Shanfeld earned his law degree from the University of Southern California and has handled more than 10,000 bankruptcy cases over three decades. That depth matters in debt relief because the first decision, whether to file at all, is usually the most consequential one, and it is made best by lawyers who have seen how each path plays out.
Clients get direct access to an attorney from the first call, a free consultation, and fast action when a garnishment, foreclosure sale, or repossession is only days away. The firm files in every division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California. Cases can be handled entirely by phone, email, video, and online chat, and 100% virtual consultations are available, so a Reseda client never has to rearrange a work schedule to get started.
Debt Situations We Resolve for Reseda Households
- Credit Card Debt: Balances that have outgrown what minimum payments can ever retire are usually unsecured debt that Chapter 7 can discharge, or that Chapter 13 can fold into a single plan payment. Settlement is a real option when you have a lump sum available and want to avoid filing.
- Medical Bills: Unsecured and dischargeable in bankruptcy, and often the debt behind a sudden job loss or illness. Many Reseda families come to us after a hospitalization turned into a pile of billing statements and then a collection lawsuit.
- Creditor Lawsuits and Judgments: Once a collector sues, the clock on your written response is short, and a default can lead to a judgment, a bank levy, or a wage garnishment. Filing bankruptcy halts the suit and enforcement through the automatic stay.
- Wage Garnishment: A garnishment on an ordinary judgment takes a capped share of your take-home pay, and a bankruptcy filing stops most garnishments when the case is filed. Employers also cannot fire you because of a garnishment on a single judgment.
- Mortgage Default and Foreclosure: Chapter 13 lets you stop a scheduled sale and catch up missed payments over time, and loan modification may lower the payment going forward. A wholly unsecured second mortgage can sometimes be stripped off in Chapter 13.
- Car Repossession and Deficiencies: Missed car payments lead to repossession, and the lender may then pursue a deficiency balance. Chapter 7 can eliminate the deficiency, and Chapter 13 can help you keep a car you are behind on.
- IRS Tax Debt: Representation can stop levies and set up payment arrangements, and some older income tax debt can be discharged if it meets specific timing rules.
- Student Loans and Personal Loans: Personal and payday loans are generally dischargeable, while most student loans are not, so student loan debt calls for its own strategy.
What to Do in the First Days After a Lawsuit, Levy, or Foreclosure Notice
Start by gathering every piece of paper a creditor has sent you, with the dates you received it written on the envelope or the first page. If a summons arrived, the response deadline printed on it controls everything, and a statute of limitations only helps if you raise it. The time limit to sue on a written contract debt is four years and on an oral contract debt is two years, but that expired deadline is a defense you must assert in a written answer. If you ignore the suit, the court can still enter judgment against you. A payment on an old, already time-barred debt will not revive it, and only a signed written acknowledgment restarts the clock, so be careful about what you sign or say to a collector.
If a judgment already exists, know that a California money judgment is enforceable for 10 years from entry and can be renewed, although recent law limits renewal to a single five-year extension for medical expense judgments and for personal debt judgments under the statutory dollar thresholds. If your bank account is levied, a protected amount of your deposits is exempt automatically, with no claim form required, and the bank must apply it before turning money over. That protection does not reach levies for wages owed to others, support, or debts owed to the state. For a wage garnishment on an ordinary judgment, the cap is the lesser of 20 percent of weekly disposable earnings or 40 percent of the amount by which those earnings exceed 48 times the applicable minimum hourly wage, using 96, 104, or 208 times the wage for biweekly, semimonthly, or monthly pay. You can also claim as exempt any portion of earnings proven necessary to support yourself or your family.
Foreclosure has its own calendar. After a notice of default is recorded, a sale cannot be set until about 90 days later, and the sale date can be no earlier than three months and 20 days after recording. The notice of sale must be mailed by registered or certified mail and posted on the property at least 20 days before the sale. You can reinstate a monetary default until five business days before the sale. If the sale is postponed at least 10 business days, the lender must send written notice of the new date within five business days. For a repossessed car, the lender must give at least 15 days’ written notice before selling it, 20 days if the notice is mailed from or to an address outside California, and on written request it must extend the redemption period by 10 days. Deficiency liability depends on that notice going out within 60 days of repossession and containing the required items.
For bankruptcy, Reseda is in the San Fernando Valley Division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, which sits in Woodland Hills. The division is determined by your street address zip code, and the court’s online locator confirms it. Collection lawsuits themselves are heard in Los Angeles County Superior Court, which is divided into geographic districts, and your summons will identify the courthouse. Call before any deadline passes, because a bankruptcy petition filed in time stops the lawsuit, the levy, the garnishment, or the sale the moment it is filed.
Bankruptcy, Settlement, or Neither: Matching the Tool to the Debt
Chapter 7 wipes out qualifying unsecured debt and most cases finish in roughly four months. Eligibility turns on the means test, which compares your income to the California median for your household size and then accounts for actual expenses. Chapter 13 suits people with steady income who need structure rather than a wipeout: debts are reorganized into one payment over three to five years, and creditors are bound once the court confirms the plan. It fits people who are behind on a mortgage or car loan, who earn above the Chapter 7 limits, or who owe priority taxes or support arrears that Chapter 7 cannot eliminate.
Debt settlement sits outside court. We negotiate directly with creditors to resolve a balance for less than you owe, which can make sense when the debt is manageable, you have a source of funds, and you want to avoid a bankruptcy on your record. It does not carry the automatic stay, so a creditor can keep suing while talks continue. That is one reason the choice between settlement and filing should be made with a lawyer who offers both.
California does not use the federal exemptions. Filers choose between two state systems and must pick one for the entire case: the standard system, which includes a large homestead exemption set by a formula tied to local home prices, or a second system with a flexible wildcard that often suits renters better. You must also have lived in California for at least 730 days to use these exemptions. Most clients keep everything they own, and choosing the right system is one of the most important decisions in the case.
Reseda Debt Relief Questions, Answered
How fast does bankruptcy stop collection activity?
The automatic stay takes effect the moment the petition is filed. Lawsuits, garnishments, bank levies, repossessions, and foreclosure proceedings must stop. In an emergency we can often prepare and file quickly.
Do I have to choose between debt settlement and bankruptcy?
No, and we do not push either one. We review your income, property, and debts, then tell you which path fits, including options outside of court.
Can I lose my house in Chapter 7?
Most clients keep their homes. The question is whether your equity is protected by the homestead exemption and whether you are current on the mortgage. If you have more equity than the exemption covers or you are behind, Chapter 13 may let you keep the home and catch up over time.
What if the debt collector sued me on a very old account?
Check the dates. A four-year limit applies to written contract and book account claims, and two years applies to oral contracts. The expired deadline must be raised in a written answer to the lawsuit, or the court can still enter judgment, so do not ignore the summons.
Will my employer find out about a bankruptcy?
Not automatically. They might learn if they are a creditor, if a garnishment has to stop, or if Chapter 13 payments come out of your paycheck. Employers cannot fire you solely for filing, and they also cannot fire you for a garnishment on one judgment.
How long does bankruptcy stay on my credit report?
A Chapter 7 can remain up to 10 years from filing, and the bureaus typically remove a Chapter 13 after 7 years. The effect on your score fades well before then, and many clients begin rebuilding within the first year.
What if a collector keeps calling after I told them to stop?
California’s Rosenthal Act covers original creditors as well as third-party collectors. A consumer can recover actual damages, a court can add $100 to $1,000 for willful and knowing violations, and a prevailing consumer can recover attorney fees. The suit must be brought within one year, and a collector can avoid liability by correcting a curable violation within 15 days of learning of it.
Can I file again if I have filed before?
Yes, subject to waiting periods: 8 years between Chapter 7 filings, 4 years to file Chapter 13 after a Chapter 7, 2 years between Chapter 13 filings, and generally 6 years to file Chapter 7 after a Chapter 13, a period that can be shortened if the plan paid enough to unsecured creditors.
Is a bankruptcy petition preparer a safe substitute for a lawyer?
A preparer can type information into forms but cannot give legal advice, choose your exemptions, or represent you if a trustee or creditor objects. Errors can cost you property or your discharge.
Will a judgment against me expire?
A judgment can be enforced for 10 years from entry, and renewal extends it, subject to the limits on medical and personal debt judgments. Bankruptcy can often eliminate the debt well before then.
Do I need to come to an office to get help?
No. We handle cases entirely by phone, email, video, and online chat, and free virtual consultations are available.
Which debts cannot be discharged?
Child support, alimony, most student loans, most government fines, and debts for injuries caused by drunk driving generally survive. Some older income taxes can be eliminated if they meet timing rules.
Serving Reseda and the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles County, and Beyond
Our work for Reseda clients extends across the San Fernando Valley, including Northridge, Winnetka, Tarzana, Encino, Woodland Hills, Granada Hills, North Hills, Mission Hills, Van Nuys, North Hollywood, San Fernando, and Sylmar, and out to the Westside communities of Hollywood and Santa Monica. We also represent clients throughout Los Angeles County in Santa Clarita, Long Beach, Lakewood, Torrance, Compton, Inglewood, and the Antelope Valley cities of Lancaster and Palmdale, plus Acton.
Beyond Los Angeles County, we serve the Inland Empire in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, including Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Fontana, San Bernardino, Pomona, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, Claremont, Glendora, West Covina, and the Coachella Valley. In Orange County we help families in Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Buena Park, Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Westminster, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Tustin, La Habra, Placentia, Mission Viejo, and Laguna Niguel, along with Norwalk, Bellflower, Paramount, Gardena, Cerritos, Cypress, Signal Hill, and Huntington Park.
Talk to a Reseda Debt Relief Attorney About Your Next Step
If a lawsuit, garnishment, or sale date is on the calendar, call Wadhwani & Shanfeld and speak directly with an attorney about your options. A Reseda debt relief attorney can tell you in one conversation whether bankruptcy, settlement, or something else gives you the best result, and the consultation is free. Reach out by phone, email, video, or online chat, and we will start working on the deadline in front of you.
