Fontana Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Lawyer
A foreclosure notice taped to a Fontana front door, a car payment two months behind, or a paycheck that keeps shrinking from a garnishment can make it feel like you have to pick between catching up and keeping what you own. Wadhwani & Shanfeld is a consumer bankruptcy and debt relief law firm that handles Chapter 13 filings for homeowners and wage earners in Fontana, throughout San Bernardino County, and across Southern California.
A Fontana Chapter 13 bankruptcy lawyer helps people who have steady income but have fallen behind, and who want to keep their property rather than surrender it. Chapter 13 lets you fold missed mortgage payments, car loan arrears, back taxes, and unsecured debts into a single court-approved plan that runs three to five years. Once the court confirms the plan, creditors are bound by it, and while you stay current on the plan payments, they cannot foreclose, repossess, or garnish.
For many Fontana households, the appeal is simple: you do not have to give up the house. Instead of facing a sale date, you get years to cure the default in manageable installments, with a legal shield in place from the moment the case is filed.
Who Chapter 13 Fits Best, and Who It Does Not
Chapter 13 is a repayment plan, so it only works if you have reliable income to fund it. That income can come from a job, self-employment, a pension, or other regular sources. The plan payment is built from what you can afford after necessary living expenses, and it must at minimum pay unsecured creditors as much as they would have received if your non-exempt property had been sold in a Chapter 7 case.
Where Chapter 7 wipes out qualifying unsecured debt in roughly four months, Chapter 13 trades speed for staying power. It tends to be the better tool when you are behind on a secured debt you want to keep, when your income is too high to pass the Chapter 7 means test, or when you owe debts that Chapter 7 cannot eliminate, such as certain recent taxes or support arrears. It is also the answer when you have more home equity than California’s exemptions cover and you do not want a trustee selling the house.
It is not the right fit for everyone. If your income is too thin to fund a plan, or your debts are almost entirely unsecured credit cards and medical bills, Chapter 7 or a negotiated settlement may serve you better. The attorneys at Wadhwani & Shanfeld look at both paths, and at options outside bankruptcy, before recommending one.
Why Choose Wadhwani & Shanfeld for Chapter 13 Representation
Wadhwani & Shanfeld has helped more than 30,000 individuals and families resolve debt, and the firm is led by two Board-Certified Specialists in Consumer Bankruptcy through the American Board of Certification, a distinction held by a small fraction of attorneys nationally. Together the firm’s attorneys bring more than 90 years of combined legal experience. The firm serves clients in Fontana and throughout Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties, handling Chapter 7, Chapter 13, debt settlement, foreclosure defense, wage garnishment, creditor lawsuits, IRS tax debt, and small business debt.
Raj Wadhwani, founding shareholder and partner, 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, founding shareholder and partner, 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 Chapter 13, where the quality of the plan, the accuracy of the arrearage figures, and the handling of the trustee and secured lenders over several years determine whether a case reaches discharge.
Clients get direct access to an attorney from the first call, free consultations, and the option to handle everything by phone, email, video, or online chat. When a garnishment, foreclosure sale, or repossession is days away, the firm moves fast. It files in every division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, and the plan it builds is based on your income, your property, and your goals rather than a one-size-fits-all filing.
Situations That Lead Fontana Homeowners and Workers to File Chapter 13
- Mortgage Arrears and Foreclosure Notices: Chapter 13 lets you repay missed mortgage payments over the life of the plan while keeping current on new payments. California foreclosures follow a fixed timeline, with the sale date set no earlier than three months and 20 days after the notice of default is recorded, so the window to act is real but finite.
- Car Loans and Repossession Risk: If you are behind on a vehicle you need for work, a plan can cure the arrears and stop a repossession. Lenders must give written notice before selling a repossessed vehicle, but filing before the repossession keeps the car in your hands.
- Wage Garnishment: A judgment creditor can take a share of each paycheck, capped by a formula tied to your disposable earnings and the minimum wage. Filing Chapter 13 stops most garnishments the day the case is filed.
- Income Too High for Chapter 7: Households that fail the means test, which compares income to the California median for your household size, often turn to Chapter 13 because it relies on what you can actually afford to pay.
- Back Taxes and Support Arrears: Priority debts such as certain recent income taxes and past-due support cannot be wiped out in Chapter 7 but can be paid through a Chapter 13 plan without penalties piling up the same way.
- Home Equity Above the Exemption: If your equity exceeds what California’s homestead protection covers, Chapter 13 allows you to keep the home by paying creditors the value of the unprotected portion over time instead of facing a sale.
- Wholly Unsecured Second Mortgages: When the home is worth less than the first mortgage, a second mortgage may be stripped off in Chapter 13, converting it to an unsecured debt handled through the plan.
- Creditor Lawsuits and Judgments: A suit from a collection firm does not have to end in a bank levy. The automatic stay halts lawsuits, judgments, and levies the moment a petition is filed.
What to Do Right Now If You Are Behind and Thinking About Chapter 13
Start by pulling together the paperwork that drives the plan: your last several pay stubs, recent tax returns, a current mortgage statement showing the arrears, any notice of default or notice of sale, and every collection letter or court paper you have received. If you have been served with a lawsuit, note the response deadline on the summons; missing it can lead to a default judgment that makes everything harder. If a foreclosure is in motion, find the sale date. You can generally reinstate a monetary default until five business days before the sale, but a bankruptcy filing can be prepared and filed faster than most people expect, and the firm acts quickly when a date is close.
Do not pay one creditor in a panic at the expense of your house or car payment, and do not drain retirement savings to catch up on unsecured debt. Retirement accounts are generally protected in bankruptcy, and spending them on credit cards can leave you worse off. Also avoid transferring property to relatives or running up new charges before filing, since a trustee can look back at both.
Your zip code, not your mailing preference, determines which division of the bankruptcy court handles your case. Fontana is in San Bernardino County, which falls under the Riverside Division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California. That court confirms your plan and oversees the case. Civil lawsuits and judgments against you, by contrast, are handled by the San Bernardino County Superior Court, which has a Fontana District; the automatic stay applies to those cases the moment you file.
After filing, expect to attend a meeting of creditors, typically by video or phone, where the trustee asks about your finances. You will begin making plan payments within a short window, usually before the plan is even confirmed. Missing those payments is the most common reason Chapter 13 cases fail, so the plan has to be built on a budget you can sustain for years. The firm walks clients through that budget before anything is filed and handles trustee questions and creditor objections as they arise.
How California’s Exemptions Shape Your Chapter 13 Plan
California does not use the federal exemption list. You choose between two state systems for the whole case: the standard system, which offers a substantial homestead protection tied to home values in your county, and the alternative system with a flexible wildcard, which often suits renters or people with little home equity. You must also have lived in California for at least 730 days to use California’s exemptions. Picking the right system is one of the most consequential decisions in any case.
In Chapter 13, exemptions work differently than in Chapter 7. You are not at risk of losing property to a trustee sale, but the value of what you cannot protect sets a floor for what your plan must pay unsecured creditors. A larger homestead exemption can mean a lower plan payment. The firm’s attorneys evaluate your equity, vehicles, tools of the trade, and retirement accounts to choose the system that keeps the plan affordable.
Fontana Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Questions Answered
How long does a Chapter 13 plan last?
Plans run three to five years. Your length depends largely on your income compared to the California median and on how much you need to repay in arrears and priority debts. Many people finish within the full five years because mortgage arrears and tax debts take time to cure.
Will I lose my home in Chapter 13?
Not if you keep making the plan payments and stay current on your regular mortgage payments going forward. The entire purpose of the chapter for most homeowners is to cure the default and keep the property.
Can Chapter 13 stop a foreclosure sale that is already scheduled?
Yes. The automatic stay takes effect the moment the petition is filed and halts the sale. Because California foreclosures move on a fixed timeline, with a notice of sale mailed and posted at least 20 days before the sale, calling early gives the most room to prepare, but the firm can often file quickly even when a sale is close.
What happens to my credit cards and medical bills in Chapter 13?
They are treated as unsecured debts and paid through the plan to the extent your income and non-exempt property require. Whatever remains unpaid at the end of a completed plan is generally discharged.
How does Chapter 13 affect a wage garnishment?
It stops most garnishments at filing. California normally limits a garnishment to the lesser of 20 percent of your weekly disposable earnings or a figure tied to the minimum wage, and a judgment debtor can ask the court to exempt more if needed to support the family. Once you file, the garnishment stops and the creditor’s claim is dealt with inside your plan.
Can I file Chapter 13 if I filed bankruptcy before?
Often yes, subject to waiting periods. You generally must wait four years to file Chapter 13 after a Chapter 7 and two years between Chapter 13 filings. The firm checks your prior filing dates before recommending a strategy.
What if I fall behind on plan payments?
Contact your attorney right away. Missed payments can lead the trustee to seek dismissal, but problems can often be fixed by catching up or modifying the plan if your income has changed, for example after a job loss or reduced hours.
Can Chapter 13 deal with a car loan I owe more on than the car is worth?
In some cases the balance can be reduced to the vehicle’s value and paid through the plan, depending on when the loan was taken out and whether the car is for personal use. This is a detail worth reviewing early because it can lower the plan payment significantly.
Is an old judgment against me still a problem?
A California money judgment is enforceable for 10 years from entry and can be renewed, though recent law limits renewals for smaller medical and personal debt judgments to a single five-year renewal. Chapter 13 can address judgments and any liens they created, so it is worth bringing all old paperwork to your consultation.
Will my employer find out I filed Chapter 13?
Not automatically. They may learn if they are a creditor or if plan payments are deducted from your paycheck. Employers are barred from firing you solely because you filed for bankruptcy.
Do I have to come to an office to file?
No. The firm offers 100% virtual consultations and handles cases fully by phone, email, video, and online chat, so you can complete the process from home in Fontana.
Serving Fontana and the Surrounding Inland Empire
Wadhwani & Shanfeld represents Chapter 13 clients from Fontana across San Bernardino County and throughout the Inland Empire. That includes neighbors in Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Ontario, Montclair, Chino, Chino Hills, Claremont, and Pomona, along with San Bernardino and communities to the east. The firm also works with families across Riverside County, including the city of Riverside and the Coachella Valley.
Beyond the Inland Empire, the firm serves the eastern San Gabriel Valley, including Glendora and West Covina, and clients across Los Angeles County in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Torrance, Compton, Inglewood, Lakewood, Santa Monica, Hollywood, and the San Fernando Valley communities of Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys, Encino, Woodland Hills, Reseda, Northridge, and North Hollywood. In the north county, it serves Santa Clarita, Lancaster, Palmdale, Acton, and the Antelope Valley. Orange County clients in Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, and Newport Beach can reach the same attorneys, with every case handled in the Central District of California.
Talk to a Fontana Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Attorney Today
If you are behind on a mortgage, a car loan, or a garnishment is already shrinking your paycheck, a conversation with a Fontana Chapter 13 bankruptcy attorney can show you whether a repayment plan keeps your property and puts you back on solid footing. Call Wadhwani & Shanfeld for a free consultation and speak directly with an attorney about your options, whether that means Chapter 13, Chapter 7, or a resolution outside of court. If a sale date or court deadline is close, say so on the first call and the firm will move quickly.
