Bankruptcy Kitchener Blog

For residents of Kitchener, the bankruptcy process begins with the realization that you have more debt than you can handle, and you need a fresh start. To begin, you arrange a no-charge initial consultation with a licensed trustee in bankruptcy.

In Kitchener, Hoyes, Michalos & Associates Inc. has office hours from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm each day, and evening appointments can also be arranged many nights each week if required. Their Kitchener bankruptcy office is located at 607 King Street West, Suite 204 (just past Victoria, in the same plaza as Tim Horton’s, the LCBO, and Zeke’s Restaurant).

At that initial consultation the trustee will review with you your income and expenses each month, and they will ask about your creditors (the people you owe money to) and your assets (what you own, like a house, car, or RRSP). Based on this information the trustee will explain all of your options, including debt consolidation, credit counseling, consumer proposals, and personal bankruptcy.

You will then take home an information package with more information. If you decide to file personal bankruptcy, you will complete the package and return it to the trustee.

A few days later you will meet with the trustee to sign your bankruptcy paperwork. As soon as the paperwork is signed, the trustee will electronically send your file to the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, a division of the federal government, and your bankruptcy officially begins.

The bankruptcy period lasts for a minimum of nine months (longer if you were previously bankrupt, or if you are a high income earner). During each of those nine months you are required to provide the trustee with a monthly budget and proof of your income (your pay stubs) each month.

You are also required to attend two credit counseling sessions, provide the trustee with the information required to file your taxes, and make a payment each month.

Once these duties are completed, you are discharged from bankruptcy, which means that all of your debts are officially eliminated.

A note will remain on your credit report for six years from the date of your discharge, indicating that you were bankrupt.

For more information, and to set up your no-charge initital consultation, please contact Hoyes Michalos & Associates in Kitchener at 519-747-0660, or e-mail a question, and let’s get started.