Before you can file for bankruptcy under either Chapter 7 or Chapter 13, you must complete credit counseling with an agency approved by the United States Trustee's office. The purpose of this counseling is to give you an idea of whether you really need to file for bankruptcy or whether some sort of repayment plan would be sufficient to get you back on your economic feet.

During your credit counseling session, a certified credit counselor will help you explore your options. Your credit counselor will be a qualified financial advisor who will help you decide if bankruptcy is the right choice for you. In addition, he or she is required by law to offer you impartial advice. This means that he or she cannot lead you to make a specific financial decision.

Your session may be in the form of a phone call to a credit counseling agency. You may even be able to send a credit counseling agency your information through the internet. You will probably spend about one hour discussing your situation with the credit counselor. When you have completed your pre-bankruptcy credit counseling, you will receive a certificate after paying a fee between $40 and $50. You will then be eligible to file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

Approved Credit Counseling Agencies for the Western District of Pennsylvania as of February, 2006:

Institute for Financial Literacy, Inc.
449 Forest Avenue
Suite 12
Portland, ME 04101
866-662-4932
www.financiallit.org
Telephonic & Internet

Advantage Credit Counseling Service Inc.
River Park Commons
2403 Sidney Street
Suite 400
Pittsburgh, PA 15203
888-511-2227
www.advantageccs.org

In Person, Telephonic

Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta Inc.
100 Edgewood Avenue
Suite 1800
Atlanta, GA 30303
800-251-2227
www.cccsinc.org
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic and Internet 

Consumer Credit Counseling Service of New Jersey
185 Ridgedale Avenue
Cedar Knolls, NJ 07927-1812
800-728-3260
www.cccsnj.org
In Person, Telephonic, & Internet

Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Northeastern PA, Inc.
1400 Abington Executive Park
Clarks Summit, PA 18411
800-922-9537
www.cccsnepa.org
In Person, Telephonic, Internet

Consumer Credit Counseling Service of the Midwest, Inc.
4500 East Broad Street
Columbus, OH 43213
800-355-2227
www.cccservices.com
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic and Internet 

Consumer Credit Counseling Services of San Francisco
150 Post Street, 5th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94108
800-777-7526
www.cccssf.org
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic and Internet 

Consumer Credit Management, Inc.
28124 Orchard Lake Road
Suite 102
Farmington Hills, MI 48334
888-821-4357
www.ccmcanhelp.com
In Person, Telephonic, and Internet

Credit Advisors Foundation
1818 South 72nd Street
Omaha, NE 68124
800-942-9027
www.creditadvisors.org
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic, and Internet

Credit Counseling Center
832 Second Street Pike
Richboro, PA 18954
877-900-4222
www.ccc-credit.com
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic, & Internet

Credit Counseling Centers of America
9330 LBJ Freeway
Suite 900
Dallas, TX
75379-8039
800-493-2222
www.cccamerica.org
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic and Internet

Garden State Consumer Credit Counseling, Inc.
225 Willowbrook Road
Freehold, NJ 07728
877-892-4557
www.novadebt.org
In Person (not available in all judicial districts) & Telephonic

GreenPath, Inc.
38505 Country Club Drive, Suite 210
Farmington Hills, MI  48331-3429
800-630-6718
www.greenpathbk.com
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), and Telephonic

Hummingbird Credit Counseling and Education, Inc.
3737 Glenwood Avenue
Suite 100-106
Raleigh, NC 27612
800-645-4959
www.hbcce.org
Telephonic & Internet

Money Management International Inc.
9009 West Loop South
7th Floor
Houston, TX 77096-1719
877-918-2227
www.moneymanagement.org
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic and Internet

Springboard Nonprofit Consumer Credit Management Inc.
4351 Latham Street
Riverside, CA 92501
800-947-3752
www.credit.org
In Person (not available in all judicial districts), Telephonic and Internet