Contact a bankruptcy lawyer to discuss possible alternatives to bankruptcy.  You may find that bankruptcy may not be your only option.  If credit card debt got out of hand, you (1) would want to talk to a credit counseling agency to explore the possibility of reducing your interest rate and make your payments more affordable; or (2) you may first want to contact the credit card company directly to negotiate lower payments.  If foreclosure is looming on the horizon, or if you are already in foreclosure, you would want to first talk to your mortgage servicer or a lender to explore modification or other work out options on your loan.  If none of these options are possible, you should then consider  bankruptcy.