Common Questions
Page 2 of 2
- Will I lose my home, retirement or all my life savings?
- The answer is no. I have included copies of the IRS Regulations pertaining to an IRS release of a levy. I often use these regulations in the offer process. You should be aware that the IRS is not subject to the exemptions you may claim in a bankruptcy. However, they allow you a minimum of a 20% reduction in the valuation of all your assets. This amount may be significantly increased if you are near retirement age, have a documented disability and/or are the care giver of a person with a disability. These examples are just three of the many hardship examples.
- Will this process be as easy as promised on the television advertisements?
- No. However, I have never had a client complain that they could have done better. Were they happy when they wrote the check? Obviously not. However, you could tell they were greatly relieved.
- What if the offer process will not work?
- You have the right to file bankruptcy. Additionally, most of the work associated with an offer can be easily adapted to the bankruptcy forms which reduces the professional fees in a bankruptcy.
- Do you have attorney–client privilege?
- After law school, I worked in the tax division of a large, national accounting firm. It was great experience, but I wanted to practice law. When I opened my law practice, I researched the possibility of having a dual practice, which I was qualified to do. However, in my research, I discovered that in many instances, the IRS would claim that the dual practitioner was practicing as a CPA for the period in question. I did not want my clients facing this issue. As a licensed attorney, I can perform any function of a CPA except sign an audit report. Since I do not perform audits, I decided to only practice as a licensed attorney.
Read the federal levy-release regulations Jim uses directly in hardship offers.
Continue to IRS Regulations