The Woodland Hills foreclosure trend year-over-year is pretty flat from the standpoint of Notices of Default.  Notices of Default are only down 5.26%.  On the other hand, Notices of Sale are off 25.00% in the same time period. Compared to Lancaster or Palmdale who experienced significant decreases in Notices of Default the modest 5.26% is a pretty modest.  I think it would be fair to say that things never got quite as bad in Woodland Hills even at the height of the recession and the housing bubble burst so this might help explain the discrepancy.

By the way, Foreclosure Radar is great service which provides incredibly detailed data on foreclosures pretty much anywhere you could imagine and I have them to thank for all these neat graphs.

Notices of Default are down 15.96% (213 to 179) from the prior month and 26.34% from the prior year (243 to 179).  Bucking the downward trend, Notices of Sale were UP for the month of April (182 to 193), but over the course of the last 12 months are down 35.45% from the prior year (299 to 193).

Unlike Palmdale, where the Time to Foreclose was significantly higher, the Time to Foreclose in Lancaster was relatively flat. In the prior 12 months, the Time to Foreclose was up, but only slightly by 7.94% or 277 days in April 2010 compared to 299 days in April 2011.

Again, the inescapable impression is things are getting better, but this does not diminish the pain that is still all too prevalent in our community in Lancaster. Interestingly, Palmdale seems to have improved a little more than Lancaster in comparison to my Palmdale Foreclosures post, but improvement is improvement. I know I am still hard at work as a bankruptcy attorney representing the interest of many debtors in Lancaster and throughout the Antelope Valley.

Interestingly, the time to foreclose in Palmdale has been gradually increasing and now sits at 347 days on average which is an increase of 18.43% from the prior year.

In general, it seems things are getting better in Palmdale and other areas in the Antelope Valley although slower than we would all like.

According to the US Air Force Academy website:

“The amount of your unpaid debts, by itself, may jeopardize your clearance, even if you don’t file bankruptcy. In that sense, not filing for bankruptcy may make you more of a security risk due to the size of your outstanding debts. By the same token, using a government-approved means of dealing with your debts may actually be viewed as an indication of financial responsibility. Eliminating your debts through bankruptcy may make you less of a security risk.”

Thus, if your debt and credit is affecting your security clearance at Edward Air Force Base or elsewhere, bankruptcy is an option to be considered.

In addition to downtown, it is one of locations where I primarily practice law. It is also where you will frequently find me assisting Pro Se Debtors at the “Self-Help Desk” and giving lectures on how to file bankruptcy.

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Street Address:
21041 Burbank Boulevard
Woodland Hills, California 91367-6609

Website: http://www.cacb.uscourts.gov/
General Information: 818-587-2900
Voice Case Informaton System: 213-894-4111 or 866-522-6053

The San Fernando Valley division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court – Central Division in Woodland Hills used to serve the Antelope Valley in addition to the San Fernando Valley itself, but my clients in the Antelope Valley started filing downtown in 2010.

The Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Court is open 9am to 4pm Monday through Friday and parking is available without charge.

Perhaps, I will see you at the San Fernando Valley Bankruptcy Court’s “Self-Help Desk” and feel free to contact me regarding my next seminar for Pro Se Debtors in the San Fernando Valley and beyond. 

Here I am at the Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Self-Help Desk. Out the window, you can see people lining up so get there early.

The Bankruptcy “Self-Help Desk” Project is provided free of charge as a joint project of Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, the San Fernando Valley Bar Association, the Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association, and the Public Counsel Law Center’s Debtor Assistance Project.

The United States Bankruptcy Court – Central District – San Fernando Valley Division in Woodland Hills provides an impressive array of self-help services of which it is an honor to be a part. The quality of the judiciary is also very solid.

While the Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Court is by no means one of those historic courthouses with interesting architecture, from judges, clerks, and security guards to incredible volunteer staff, it is a privilege to practice the law between these four walls. As unpleasant as some may find the bankruptcy process, filing bankruptcy in Woodland Hills is a comparatively good experience with many people whose goal it is to assist you.

The Lancaster Regional Library is in partnership with the LA Law Library to offer our community throughout the Antelope Valley access to free legal research. This can be of significant value as you do your own research on any number of legal issues including what we discuss most often around here: filing your bankruptcy.

At the date of posting, the library was recently renovated in a joint redevelopment effort between the City of Lancaster and County of Los Angeles. The library is located at 601 W. Lancaster Blvd., Lancaster, CA 93534-3398.

I know not all of you reading this are considering filing for bankruptcy, but certainly some of you are.  As this is an area of my significant knowledge and expertise, let me suggest the various books on the subject by Nolo which are the single best and inexpensive resource on topic.  Better yet, they are found in most public libraries.

The book on how to file for chapter 7 bankruptcy is in extremely high demand however so you might consider purchasing it directly.

How to File for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Of course, whether you are filing bankruptcy or doing your own legal research on another legal matter feel free to give my office a call with any questions you might have.

In this difficult 2010 calendar year, I continue to note that having an exemplar of a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition remains an invaluable resource in assisting debtors through their Chapter 7 bankruptcy. As I have cautioned previously, this form should absolutely NOT be copied verbatim, but if used properly, I think you will find this example of a chapter 7 bankruptcy petition very instructive on many accounts. 

Of course, qualified representation by a bankruptcy attorney is ideal.  Every debtor is different and specific legal advise based on a complete understanding of an individual will tend to assure the best result in discharging your debts through the bankruptcy process. 

On the other hand, equal access to the law is an important principle too and it is one that I take very seriously.  Combined with the work I do at the self-help desk, I hope this helps in its small way as well.

Related Posts:  

• Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition
• Helpful Hints for Pro Se Debtors: Lessons Learned at Creditor Meetings
• Chapter 7 vs. Chapter 13

The courthouse was built in or around 1900 by the noted architect Franklin Pierce Burnham who also designed a number of historic buildings including the Carnegie Art Museum and the Georgia State Capital building.  Burnham was a master in the Beax-Arts Classicism style and the Riverside County Courthouse is patterned specifically on the facade of the Grand Palais in Paris complete with Ionic columns and incredible sculptures on its roof.

The building experienced significant damage due to the 1994 Northridge Earthquake the ferocity of which I remember quite vividly as a resident of the San Fernando Valley at the time.  The subsequent renovation and re-dedication in 1998 restored the Riverside County Courthouse to its former historical luster.

It’s one of those places in which it is a true privilege to practice the law.

SOURCES:

1. http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courts/trial/historic/riverside.htm
2. http://www.riversidethemag.com/issues/summer_08/architecture.php
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Pierce_Burnham

While the community in Lancaster and the Antelope Valley continues putter along in difficult economic times, it is encouraging to have the community acknowledged for an innovative design. Indeed, we are far from bankrupt on ideas.

Arbor Lofts seems to be designed to spark an artist’s Renaissance of sorts. It is part of the Downtown Specific Plan to transform the historic core of the city from neglected and vacant to a “place of historic, cultural, social, economic, and civic vitality.”

The building is designed with its artist residents in mind and an eye toward sustainability. The ground floor features a gallery of the residents work. Abundant natural light and mechanical ventilation serves the sometimes noxious artistic process. Finished concrete floors would seem to make cleaning paint or other messy art supplies a breeze and 220-volt outlet for equipment such as a kiln expands the horizons of what might spring forth from this creative milieu.

In a period of difficulty, the community of Lancaster appears to be in a process of seeking innovative ways to reorganize itself to better serve its residents.  I share this not only to expand optimism and hope, but to remind everybody that challenge presents opportunity to renew ourselves.

Lancaster Related Posts:

• Despite Bankruptcies and Foreclosures, Lancaster, California has Piercing Ray of Sunshine
• Lancaster Bankruptcy, Religion and the Bible – Is Filing Bankruptcy Moral?

Clint Jolly’s food store in Sparks, Nev., has proved the point in explicitly odorous terms.  Clint Jolly sought Chapter 11 bankrupty protection in 2008.  Eventually, they were forced to turn everything over to the bankruptcy trustee and the bank who we can thank for proving the smelly point exempli gratia.

Butcher Boy was a grocery, deli, and catering service founded in 1974.   It was part of a local community and known for providing fine foods to local families  Jolly of course told the bank and bankruptcy trustee about the freezer which was used to store game meats for processing for hunters.   The bank and bankruptcy trustee nonetheless allowed power to be shut off and the meats stored to spoil.  It wasn’t long until the whole place began wafting a terrible smell over the same local community it used to serve.  Due to continued inaction, there’s even talk about the Environmental Health Services Department having to use a HazMat team to clean up all the spoiled meat.

Jolly, as a responsible member of his community, felt the need to apologize on his blog and on the following YouTube video:

Take a look at the proof that bankruptcy stinks for yourself in this local news piece:

Don’t misunderstand the lesson here.  It’s a testament to the failure of banks to act with reasonable prudence in the interest of a local community and people in it rather than an overly broad condemnation of the bankruptcy process.  Communities, individuals, and business need protection from this kind of institutional insanity.

So YOU may still think bankruptcy stinks.  We have a case in point, but if Butcher Boy had been able to successfully reorganize under a Chapter 11 it’s not hard to argue that an entire community would be better off.  The latter is what gets this bankruptcy attorney energized everyday to continue my work on behalf of debtors.

[Via WSJ]