65 years old. Live in Virginia. Own home with mortgage and would keep current on payments. Own one car with no loan. No savings.
Would I be judgement proof?
My home equity is $300K. But isn’t a primary residence exempt from unsecured debt creditors?
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answered on Nov 26, 2023
Your Social Security and pension are exempt and, depending on where you live, you are eligible to claim a homestead exemption under your state law. Same with your car. If your equity is less than your homestead exemption, you are probably judgment proof. However, that will not keep your creditors... View More 
property tax lien was turned in for redemption a year ago. cant get to my equity because of bad credit.
not much income, not enough time to sell the property. 10 days before the deed is handed over.
will chap 13 stop the redemption of my property and 250k equity and all my stuff... View More
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answered on Nov 25, 2023
A chapter 13 filing will stop the sale of your property immediately (the automatic stay). In order to continue with the sale, the taxing agency will need to ask the Bankruptcy Court to lift the automatic stay to proceed with the foreclosure. If you have significant equity in the property, it is... View More
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answered on Nov 23, 2023
There is a form to request the Bankruptcy Court to waive the filing fee. Check your local Bankruptcy Court website (www.uscourts.gov). They usually provide information on free legal services. You can also check upsolve.org. If it's available in your area, its services are free to those who... View More
My wife is worried that if we divorce and I eventually went bankrupt that she will be legally responsible for my finances. She thinks that there's a 5 year look back so if I went bankrupt within 5 years of our divorce finalization that creditors can legally claim her as liable.
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answered on Nov 22, 2023
It depends on where you live. If Maryland is a community property state, then you are both equally liable on all debts incurred during the marriage, regardless of whose name is on the contract. Although a post-nuptial agreement or divorce decree can assign responsibility to one spouse or the other... View More
I have a judgment against me for approx $7,000 total (from 12 years ago) in a different state (NJ and Florida) and am currently residing in NY. I cannot pay this debt right now in any way, not even a minimum payment. Can the debtor come after my vehicle (worth approximately 4k) if it's... View More
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answered on Nov 20, 2023
A judgment against you can be enforced against your interest in any asset, whether it is jointly owned with another or not. HOWEVER, the more important question is whether (a) the judgment is still valid, which is a question of New York law; (b) whether you have any equity in the car (difference... View More
I filed bankrtupcy and have completed my hearing. My ex spouse has several years of unpaid *Decree Ordered* joint-child expenses. Specifically outlined as "Medical and extracurricular", as agreed in writing. Now he claims he no longer owes those arrears because of the bankrtupcy. I... View More
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answered on Nov 20, 2023
Your bankruptcy does not affect amounts that are owed to you, whether pursuant to a court order or otherwise. It discharges amounts that you owe, but not the ones that are owed to you. Further, all amounts that you receive in the form of child support or spousal support are exempt (they cannot be... View More
I am unsure if bankruptcy is the way to go but I am stuck with a mortgage, car payment,medical bills as well as personal loans we created jointly and we have some separately. I also am the cosigner for loans for him with a company. I have a vehicle that I cosigned with my daughter on as well. This... View More
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answered on Nov 17, 2023
Once you fall three months behind on your mortgage payments, your lender will likely start foreclosure proceedings. A chapter 7 would delay but not prevent foreclosure (unless you have a lot of equity). A chapter 13 would allow you to bring the payments current over the course of a chapter 13 plan... View More
We filed chapter 7 earlier this year in Florida, we were granted discharge on June 28th. Since that time there is a collection agency in Wisconsin still reporting 9 medical accounts as active collections even though both their agency and all 9 of these debts were included in our original filing.... View More
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answered on Nov 14, 2023
You should consult an attorney in your area. Based on what you've said, the collection agency (and perhaps Transunion) is in violation of the law and can be sued in the bankruptcy court for damages, particularly if the collection agency is taking any action against you to collect on the debt.... View More
Is that true? And South Carolina does not offer individual with no attorney e-file for skeleton or any bankruptcy. Could I submit in a state that does, due to the urgency, but use my current states exemptions?
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answered on Nov 10, 2023
You should talk to a bankruptcy attorney in your area as the laws affecting real estate differ from state to state. If your home has already been foreclosed, you should do so immediately, although it may already be too late. You can file an emergency chapter 13 but you should talk to an attorney... View More
I am suing in Georgia small claims for 14k. I had an agreement with the defendant that I would put them on my credit card to build their credit and they would pay me monthly on charges incurred. They ran up the card 10k. I've filed the suit, defendant has been served. While I wait for the... View More
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answered on Nov 4, 2023
It depends on when the defendant filed his last bankruptcy. If he received a chapter 7 discharge, he must wait at least 8 years before he can file again. If it was a chapter 13 discharge, he only needs to wait two years to file another chapter 13. After a chapter 13 discharge, he has to wait 6... View More
I need to let the Dist. Court know that I have filed for Chapter7 and halt the proceeding (eviction hearing) that is on Monday. I was told I could call in with the BR case # once filed. But the DC is now saying I need to file something with my DC case # and the BR case #, but could not tell me... View More
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answered on Nov 3, 2023
TODAY, call the landlord's atty and give them the case number. This is really a state court question, but if you have something with the DC caption on it, make a copy of it, title it "Notice of Bankruptcy Filing" and attach a copy of the Bankruptcy Court notice of filing that's... View More
Debt is unsecured debt, HOWEVER, it is equal debt from credit cards and an SBA EIDL loan that is sub-$25k. So basically, I have $25k in CC debt and $25k in SBA EIDL which is for a SOLE-PROP biz.
1) I do not know how to answer the question as to whether I haver primarily consumer debt or... View More
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answered on Nov 1, 2023
The question of consumer vs. business debt does not really determine anything (just for statistical purposes of how many consumer cases vs. business cases are filed). My recommendation would be to check the consumer box. No, it is not possible that the SBA has forgotten you. And no, you cannot not... View More
If you are filing a Chapter 7 BR petition and you file an application to have the filing fee waived, would you have to wait for a decision and then the Chapter 7 filing would not go through at that same day?
Same question for application for the fee in installments? And do you just need... View More
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answered on Oct 31, 2023
Filing an application for a fee waiver or, in the alternative, installment payments will not delay the filing of your bankruptcy petition. At least where I'm located (Central District of California), the clerk will review your petition to make sure it's complete, then forward the... View More
I have to file Chpt.7 this week, and I need to make the initial filing myself and then am hiring an attorney in the coming weeks to go over what I have filed and submit any addendums that are required. What are the bare-bones/minimum forms I need to file in order to have a valid petition? I... View More
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answered on Oct 31, 2023
Go to your local Bankruptcy Court's website (www.uscourts.gov) and look under debtor's chapter 7 petition forms for emergency filing (it differs from court to court so I can't give you an answer without more info). Basically, you have to file a petition, credit counseling statement,... View More
The home is on my name alone. I refinanced later. The new note has my wife and me as borrower, and owners!? can she file bankruptcy without loosing home in Florida?
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answered on Oct 25, 2023
When you refinanced the home, the new loan replaced the old one (probably paid it off), so the discharged amount is gone forever. If you and your wife are both borrowers on the new loan, and you are both on title as owners, then the same rules will apply to the new loan if she files bankruptcy. She... View More
I’m unable to afford the car payment in addition to all my other personal and credit card loans. If I sell/trade my car, I would have about $15,000 negative equity.
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answered on Oct 23, 2023
The only way to avoid a deficiency judgement (the difference between what you owe and what the lender sells the car for) is to file bankruptcy. A chapter 7 will discharge all of your unsecured debt, including the deficiency on the car and your credit card debt). If you're not eligible for a... View More
I was convinced to buy a car a couple years back at a dealership through credit acceptance I had just turned 18. I was paying almost 600 a month and they charged me 20,000 for a used 2014 ford focus. It broke down after a month and I was told to bring it to a ford dealership to get it fixed so I... View More
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answered on Oct 18, 2023
If they have filed a lawsuit against you, you can defend the lawsuit and raise all those issues as a defense but it will be a long and expensive fight that you are unlikely to win. Unfortunately, you are dealing with a bully who has the ability to crush you. However, once they get a judgment... View More
I cannot afford a lawyer. Are there any resources other than the Law School that might be of help?
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answered on Sep 20, 2023
There is a lot of information on your Bankruptcy Court's website (www.casb.uscourts.gov) including information for for the San Diego Bar Assoc. lawyer referrals (www.scdba.org). Their phone number is (800) 464-1529. On the Court's website, click on the Information tab, for Filing without... View More
I stayed in Berlin for almost a year and subscribed to an accelerator. I flew to the US afterwards and completely forgot to cancel the membership. I was 4 months late in payment when I requested the cancellation, and they refused to cancel it immediately, saying their period for cancellation would... View More
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answered on Aug 3, 2023
The amount at issue is not large enough to warrant filing bankruptcy. And it is probably not large enough for the creditor to bother suing you. If you are unable to reach a settlement, then it will likely be turned over to a collection agency. It will be a negative on your credit report so if that... View More
I don't drive so driving to Fresno is not good. What documents do you need? And how long will this take? Can a person drive to my area?
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answered on Jul 25, 2023
Start with your local Bankruptcy Court website. Most courts have free bankruptcy court clinics and you can call them for help. The website is uscourts.gov. Key in your zip code so you'll get info from the nearest court (Eastern District of California). There is a lot of info on the website... View More
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