Tyler Texas Bankruptcy Law Blog

Public school teachers in Tyler, like their colleagues throughout the country, are accustomed to earning a modest salary. In many cases, salaries would rightly be called "low," especially for those working in schools in low-income areas.

The federal government often provides grants to young college graduates to help encourage them to take these jobs, but it turns out that some of these grants are getting converted into thousands of dollars in debt. Known as TEACH Grants, they are available for teachers who commit to teaching approved subjects in approved low-income schools for a period of four years. The grants can provide as much as $16,000 over the term of the commitment. If a teacher breaks the commitment, the government can require that the sum be paid back, effectively turning it into a loan instead of a grant.

We'll pick up this week where we left off from our discussion of debt relief companies and credit counseling services. Tyler residents searching for debt relief options are likely to encounter these two types of entities, and it's important to understand the difference between the two as well as their limitations.

Unlike a credit counseling program, which will offer financial advice and may be able to help you reduce your monthly payments (but not the total amount you owe), a debt relief or debt settlement company will offer to negotiate with your creditors to reduce your actual debt in exchange for a lump-sum payment by you for the remaining balance. You may need to save up a certain amount of funds in a dedicated account first. Then, the debt relief company will use the funds in that account to pay off the reduced balances that it negotiates on your behalf.

The professionals at the Law Office of Gordon Mosley have decades of experience protecting the legal rights of Tyler residents struggling with consumer debt. During this time we have seen all manner of collection techniques, among the most concerning of which can be creditor lawsuits.

A creditor lawsuit can completely blindside a consumer. You may be doing everything you can to make enough money to at least send some small payment to your creditors each month. Then, suddenly, you receive a legal complaint regarding your unpaid debts along with a summons to appear in court. You find yourself anxious, stressed, perhaps even fearful at the thought of having to face your creditors and their attorneys in court and explain to a judge the intimate details of your financial situation. And you know that a judgment against you could be ruinous.

No matter what you do, you just can't seem to get your head above water financially. In the last little while you've experienced loss of income, or you've had unexpected emergency expenses that you had to put on credit cards, or you or a loved one may have suffered a serious medical event, costing your family a small fortune. Maybe it was a combination of these or other hardships. Now you need help, but feel you are a bad person for seeking debt relief.

There is and always has been a certain stigma surrounding bankruptcy in the United States. The truth of the matter is, Texas residents who need financial help are not bad people and no one should make them feel bad for asking for help. It is their right to pursue bankruptcy if it is what will best serve their interests.