What Barry Levine talks about

Debt Settlement Versus Legal Process: what borrowers should ask before committing

For personal finance and debt relief listeners, the most dangerous choice is often the one that sounds less scary than bankruptcy. People in crisis may reach for debt settlement programs because they…

Chapter 7 Versus Chapter 13: choosing a bankruptcy path under foreclosure or garnishment

People often hear Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 as confusing labels, then assume one is simply faster and the other is worse. For listeners dealing with foreclosure pressure, wage garnishment, or…

How Different Debts Are Treated Under the Law: IRS arrears, credit cards, SBA loans and mortgage debt, and the protections and deadlines attached to each

Barry Levine has represented debtors for 45 years, and the mistake he sees most often is treating every debt the same way. IRS arrears, credit card lawsuits, SBA loans, medical bills, and mortgage…

Consumer Rights in Debt Collection: The collection sequence, what requires a court, and where borrowers can still respond

Barry Levine has spent 45 years in courtrooms and at kitchen tables explaining what creditors can and cannot do, and most people are frozen by powers those creditors do not have. The common picture…

Knowing When a Business Has Stopped Paying for Itself: The warning signs owners miss, and how to protect personal money before it is gone

Barry Levine has advised small business owners in Massachusetts for 45 years, and the money he watches vanish is almost never the company's. It goes in an order he can predict: a supplier gets paid…

Talking About Money With Your Partner Before It Becomes a Crisis: How secrecy between partners makes financial pressure worse, and how to open the conversation

Barry Levine has sat at kitchen tables for 45 years, and the conversation he hears most is the one the couple has been avoiding for months. Usually one partner has been opening the mail alone…

Rebuilding After a Business Failure: What recovery realistically takes, and how soon normal life resumes

Barry Levine has spent 45 years with people on the worst day of their financial lives, and he rejects the idea that a failed business is a verdict on the person who ran it. Most owners arrive…

Exempt and Non-Exempt Assets: the distinction that determines bankruptcy risk

Many people avoid bankruptcy because they assume filing means losing everything. Barry’s practical starting point is more specific: what assets are exempt, what assets are not exempt, and how that…

Closing a Failing Business Properly: warning signs, unavoidable debts and a cleaner restart

For small business owners under financial pressure, the instinct is often to keep going one more month, even while supplier payments are late, taxes are being missed, and personal money is being used…