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Page THE HERALD Wcxfeeaday a Bankruptcies increasing bureau says Bankruptcies are In creasing there a no doubt about It Harry president of the Brampton Bureau told The Herald Mr said per sonal bankruptcy no longer has the stigma that it once had When I was a young man there was a to It that if you went bankrupt you t quite as honest as you might be he said The Brampton Credit Bureau has two functions The bureau keeps credit histories of us people as possible in its coverage area The other side of the business la involved in collecting delinquent counts Mr estimates that the bureau collects about million a You collect a little less than 50 per cent of what a submitted to you he said Mr attributed much or the Increase In personal bankruptcies to the government scheme brought in a few years ago whereby a debtor can declare himself bankrupt and a fee of to cover the cost of the paperwork Another reason debt collection Is so is because so many govern services arc provided for people who can t handle their financing I of the opinion to use an analogy Sheriff holds record of action The fact that a member the sheriff staff is present when repossessions are made for creditors may lend give rise to the mistaken Idea that the sheriff is in solved In bankruptcies say deputy sheriff Steamer says that the only connection the sheriff s of has with actions is the form which the bankrupt trustee sends them asking Far a list of any executions filed with them against the bankrupt When a creditor sues or collection of a bad the sheriff office serves the the debtor If the debtor fails to defend himself before a judge cither in person or by counsel the creditor will automatically get a judgment and that will be recorded the sheriff office for six years unless the matter is withdrawn or paid off IF the matter Is still unresolved after six years Iftecreditorom file nave renewed for another six year term There is no limit to the number of renewals which may be made These executions which the sheriff office records will be reported to a bankrupt trustee upon request that if you put detoxification centres on every corner you have a lot more drunks he said Reporting agencies such as the Brampton Credit Bureau are regulated by law as to their melhods of operation A credit report to a business or individual who is considering granting credit to an must not pass judgement on the applicant The report must contain the applicant a credit hit It is up lo the credit to decide whether or not tho applicant Is a good credit risk Where an cant has been denied credit by one business another bus might be willing to grant him credit If For one reason or another Ihe credit rcjicts in application for credit the applicant has to lie old why he was turned down and where In formation came from Every has the right lo see what is written in or her credit history A business which is processing an application for credit plans on in tigs ling the credit history of the applicant must have the applicant sign a form that he is aw are that the credit may investigate his credit history and gives his per mission or an in to take place The collection agency brunch of the bureau is regulated by the olkction Act which sets out do don 1 such as no harassment of person who is delinquent in his payments Credit will follow a collection account right through to legal action If the debt is not paid This could involve a session in Small Claims louri or following through if he declares bankruptcy Mr lockwood said the bureau about ten a day goes bankrupt mainly of starting over again Mr said Judgments by Small laim Court and the Supreme Court are recorded in in dividual credit history But if someone is willing to take a lending money person who has gone bankrupt the whole thing cm start all over right One important detail which Mr points out is thai derogatory information is retained In the credit history for six years as required by law and then deleted from file Future credit may never know that an once went bankrupt Mr said there use dodges to keep from losing everything If they are sued As an example ho cited a case where a bus asked about collect a account from a particular debtor Mr Lock wood asked the debtor name and when he Identified the man told the business man to the money that he would never be able to collect It The mm said must joking This Fellow walks around in suits he diamond rings he his own house and he owns some equipment this businessman old me Mr I said Then he licked off each Item on tils lingers I told him bill for the suits is In for collection already the I Is leased the are Zircons he Is in wiles name the excavating cqulp- nunl is mortgaged with the bunk The companies don I gel burned as often as Ihe guy Mr Lock wood said The big com panics out who they re lending before Ihey hand over any money The biggest to Mr made three recommendations In dling credit he recommended that the applicant be fair and honest in his application and all debts Second If the applicant has hud credit difficulties tell the person lo whom he Is applying If an investigation Is carried out credit will find out anyway and he won think any better of the applicant for hiding any part of his credit history I molly an individual finds himself or herself In difficulties and has trouble making payments visit creditor in person or by phone and tell him He wants money back Mr said and lbs creditor and debtor can probably work out a new We have to get back lo the stage where people take some of their own rcspon for their finances Counselling is available BUDGET HELP If you trying to budget you might try comparing your allotments with those found in a Statistics Canada report of mi While inflation has made the actual dollars la is to iw credit report Mr Jails are full of nice lood looking he said It important lo know who credit to Hi said bureau makes to credit reports every day prim inly depart companies hanks mi The bills are mounting The creditors are threatening Desperation Is selling In While miracle working isn the team at Consumer Credit Counselling Service in Oak do their best to help borrowers sort out Iheirproblems their failures but to per cent of the lime they succeed says the Janice counsels as well as the service with the help of one other part time counsellor They have handled cases since April 1973 Only one of those involved a pensioner and probably less than five were recent arrivals to Canada as to be considered immigrants she says Mostof their clients are in the 45yearold age bracket and arc blue or white collar workers not factory employees Their average indebtedness at the begin nlng of January was per family Since their Job is to sort out a family s financial problems their speciality Is They counsel a couple together because they ningles the percentages still remain Creditors share blame Continued from Page 15 living He had to buy his ap pliances because they went with the apartment Then his wife wanted some new things like furniture and drapes and il tic has that big a mortgage you can bet he any money to gel things As a result he owes plus his house Helm wallet full of charge cards and he using them precens so they I quite raise just yet Right now he able to pay but any sickness layoff or a pregnancy would be disastrous He got his mortgage approved because he only had a fair sited loan on his car a Sears card and gas cards But look what happened he got the A lot of customers con venientlj forget half a dozen credit cards or loans when they fill in their loan applic the says For that reason asking or more than will bo asked to make out a list o their debts in their own and write at the top of it that this is heir total debt- If tne customer goes bank rupt and forgot to list debts existing at the time he for his loan the agency can then try to prove and possibly charge him with fraud This won happen until the bankruptcy has been discharged how Housing including heal utilities furnishings Transports I ion Clothing and personal care Medical and health care Other consumption education readingl Taxes Security Miscellaneous Credit counsellors report for food transportation and housing which arc higher the expense of clothing miscellaneous and recreation budgets A Bank of Scotia pamphlet used by one high school says the price paid for a Family home should exceed three and a half limes the family net income Housing coals including taxes should not exceed per cent a Family gross Income The maximum of all pajments including mortgages should not exceed per of a s gross income I It IIOUSI- HOI I revolving charge account are climbing steadily lo use your savings account your debts so you have only one bill rather lhan several takes place of your income is going to pay debts You Irusl jour savings account as a creditor is used or threatened IHlinqumc come in frequently New bills are coming in faster you pay old ones choose he longest term you can gel and the smallest What a trustee will do Lloyd has been a public trustee for IS years Although there arc no rules on who can become a public trustee he says a board of examiners who interview prospective trustees on behalf of the official receiver usually pick chartered ac or people who have had experience In handling estates through working in trustee offices Applicants must have a certain amount of financial standing because bonding Is necessary or the position While a lawyer might become a public trustee this Mr says trustees fees are set at i per cent or what is realized on the bankrupt assets or what the court approves Since the Figure 7 a per cent has not been changed since lW9mosl trustees work out their Tees on the bails of the time required to ad minister the estate and present a bill accordingly to the His business is about per businesses and 25 per cent personal bankruptcies Mr says Over the years he has had a number of clients from the north area He cases annually No more than two per cent of his customers have been bankrupt more He feels his clients arc still ashamed lo admit their Everyone has pride he says Very few are about their problems Most of them are repentant and ashamed The amount his clients owe varies although he admits it is generally larger than it used to be He sees slightly more people going bankrupt these days because of the In creased use of credit and because of the higher higher cost of living Everyone tries to live up to his current Income he soys Then something happens and he In trouble Having heard that tran properly into another person name Is an offence and also that businessmen often put property In their wife name to protect it in cases of bankruptcy we asked Mr to explain the situation He says that if It can be proved that the person was financially solvent at the time the property was transferred Into the other name then the creditors can touch it This Is also true if property has been transferred more than five years before the bankruptcy action was taken Mr says he always recommends that his clients try to work out a way to repay their debts if It is possible If think it can be done I II recommend they visit a credit counsellor and try going on a budget Sometimes it works Sometimes they come back and say hey can do it I ve had people come back to me two years after I sent them to an agency But at least tried It s good for their conscience and mine feel It will take both parties to make a budget work fcctivcly Mrs says Clients arc given help to work out a very realistic family budget A working man can be expected to get by on spending money for a week she says but neither can the money be wasted needlessly The second step Is to look at the family net income and determine what amount is surplus and can be used lo pay off debts When this is worked out the family put on a pro rate budget Say we find a family has a month to be used on debts but the monthly credit bills amount to Mrs explains We ap all the creditors in volved and ask them to acc ept payments so each one is receiving equal per ceo tag of the payments that are being Usually the creditors will accept such an arrangement because they know we will give them a certified cheque so they re sure of their money They also know everyone is gelling an equal share and no one is being favored Unless the hopeless debtors are always encouraged to repay their creditors even though takes a long time at very low level of repayment Use of credit cards has exactly increased the use credit Mrs Josiak says it has simply changed it a bit Now people I having lo go to banks for small loans They use heir credit cards instead so its a little easier and faster Most of their clients have at least three credit cards with a balance of owing on each she REDDOT REALTY LTD REALTOR WHY 3 bedroom Townhouse walk out from living room fenced patio conveniently located schools and shop Priced only Give a call today This home can be si a lull homo or as a one bedroom apt bedrooms up room hardwood 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