Do you know anything about personal bankruptcy? Us neither. I mean, we knew the rumor that it ruins your credit and should be the OPTION OF LAST RESORT, but we actually didn’t know anything useful. Kind of the opposite - we knew just enough to be scared of it without any actual information. Sounds like the stock market all over again!

So, for our last episode of Season 3, we decided to learn about something together. Finally we’re both the dummies!

To walk us through the process, we invited Texas-based bankruptcy attorney Justice Pierce with Lincoln-Goldfinch Law. What a treasure! Justice is the most compassionate, understanding and knowledgeable expert we could’ve ever asked for.

We learned a lot. The most important thing was something we talk about a lot on the WOTV - the intersection of shame and money.

Guess what?

Bankruptcy is not a moral failing.

It’s just not. Justice explained that it’s actually a feature of the entire system that people are supposed to use. Politicians from both sides of the aisle support it - that’s how universally valued it is!

So, if it’s not a reason to tar and feather yourself because of you moral failures, what is it?

It’s actually a legal tool specially designed to help people escape overwhelming debt and start fresh that has different categories depending on what your situation is. Unexpected medical bills, job loss, or economic downturns can push even the most responsible people to their limits. But you know what, even people with some irresponsible blips also get our support.

But it ruins your credit forever!! OR DOES IT?

Listen as Justice tells us everything we didn’t know we wanted to know about this option.

Oh! And we realized after the episode that we didn’t ask her how much hiring a bankruptcy attorney costs. It sounds like anywhere between $4,000 - $5,000, depending on where you live. If you’re curious, call one and find out! Report back!

Ask us your dumb investing and finance questions for….Season 4 (which will happen some day in the future!) on our Ask Us page!

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This episode was edited by our co-producer Kelly West. Music by Bad Bad Hats and Devmo.