Depending on which Chapter you go into, the costs vary. The basic fees are generally you attorney fees, filing fees, credit report fees, and credit counseling fees.
Attorney Fee: The attorney fee varies for each Chapter. The local standard for attorney fees varies between $800 to $1,500 for Chapter 7 and $3,500 for Chapter 13. Our Chapter 7 attorney fee is $1,100 and Chapter 13 is $3,500. Our firm does accept ARAG insurance as well as give a discount under certain union insurance plans. In Chapter 7, the fee must be paid prior to filing your case. In Chapter 13 cases, we require a deposit of $1,000 of the attorney fees prior to filing, although you may prepay up to the full amount. Any remaining attorney fees are paid through your Chapter 13 plan.
Filing Fees: In Dayton, the bankruptcy filing fees are $299 for Chapter 7 and $274 for Chapter 13.
Credit Report Fees: Our clients are required to produce their credit reports. There are two options in general. First, our firm can pull your condensed credit report for a fee from $30-$50, depending on whether it is a single debtor or joint debtor report. We do not receive any type of compensation for pulling your report. The price you are charged is the price our firm pays for the report. Second, you may go to www.annualcreditreport.com and attempt to pull your own free reports from Experian, Equifax and Transunion. However, while the second method is generally free, you can only get your free report once a year and clients typically have a hard time printing off the “correct” version of the credit report with all of the essential information.
Additional Fees: There are additional fees, such as our firm’s $25.00 administrative fee for opening your file and extra court fees of $26.00 for filing certain amended documents. In Chapter 13 cases, you may need your home appraised.
An overall cost comparison in the simplest of cases for a single person: (Married couples should add $20 to the costs for the joint credit report fee).
Chapter 7
Chapter 13
Attorney fee: $1100 $3500
Administrative fee: $ 25 $ 25
Filing fee: $ 299 $ 274
Credit report: $ 30 $ 30
Counseling Courses (2) $ 80 $ 80
Total $1534* $3909**
* This amount is due before we can process and file your petition.
** Only $1409 is due before we can process and file your petition, as the remaining $2500 will be collected through your Chapter 13 plan.
WE CANNOT ACCEPT CREDIT CARD PAYMENTS FOR THE ABOVE FEES AND COSTS.