Bankruptcy situation in state of Texas (need advice)

[texanboy76]

Hello everyone,

My question is this... I have about 100K in unsecured debt that is in my name and might have to file bankruptcy. I'm getting to the point where I can't make the payments and things are starting to catch up. If the mortgage is in my name and the cars are joint for both my wife and I what are the ramifications? Can they take my home or cars from me? Also does this hurt us when we file taxes? Can they take money out of our return? Let's also say I have a loan from my employees credit union that comes out of my check. I don't want to discharge that debt. Are you able to keep some debts and dismiss others? If I file on my own is this something my wife has to present in court for?

Sorry for all the questions but wanted some answers...

[dmf32835]

You've asked a lot of very good questions. I'll try to answer every single one of them in order for you.

Q. "If the mortgage is in my name and the cars are joint for both my wife and I what are the ramifications? Can they take my home or cars from me?"

A. To protect your home you should file under chapter 13 bankruptcy, under this chapter your home will be protected as long as you stick to the court's repayment plan. Another way to protect your home is to file what is called a 'Homestead Declaration'. This legal document will declare your house as your homestead, and will make it protected from forced sale to satisfy creditors. To stop the repossession of your vehicle your going to want to file under chapter 13 bankruptcy, under this chapter you can protect your car from repossession. There's also some more good news. Your car loans interest payments are going to be lowered and If you bought your car more than 30 months (610 days) ago, then your only required to pay the Kelley blue book value of the car If it is less than the amount owed on the car loan. Therefore, it looks like the best option so far would be to file for chapter 13 bankruptcy. You can download your state's most current bankruptcy forms at my website, they also come with a handbook that will guide you through the entire process.

Q. "Can they take money out of our return?"

A. This is an extremely good question which is probably why nobody replied yet. It's also a question that doesn't get asked to often. To put it as simply as I can, If the overpaid tax is for a pre-petition filing period then most creditors will want it and argue they have a right to it, but if it really isn't during the filing period then you can argue it's post petition and yours. So If you filed bankruptcy in November of 2007 and you just got your tax return for 2007's overpaid taxes, then you can't argue that it's post petition money. For another example, you filed bankruptcy in November of 2007 and you got a tax return for the overpaid taxes made during 2008, then that money is considered post-petition and therefore creditors can't force you to give them it to satisfy debts.

Q. "Let's also say I have a loan from my employees credit union that comes out of my check. I don't want to discharge that debt. Are you able to keep some debts and dismiss others?"

A. If your going to file under chapter 13 then their just going to set you up on a 3yr to 5yr repayment plan and try to lower your interest rates as much as possible.

Q. "If I file on my own is this something my wife has to present in court for?"

A. No you can file individually. Just be aware that creditors will not even care if the property is jointly owned If you file under chapter 7, which quickly liquidates your property to pay off your debt. If you plan to file under chapter 7 your wife will probably want to sell the car first and split the money.

[ThunderCow]

If the mortgage is in my name and the cars are joint for both my wife and I what are the ramifications? Can they take my home or cars from me? Also does this hurt us when we file taxes?

The guy who answered about chapter 13 is not entirely correct. Texas is a state with laws that favor debtors. I live in austin. Your family cars cannot be taken by a judgment in texas--that property is exempt. So, it's the texas law that gives you the protection, you don't HAVE to file chapter 13 to get it.

[duifyi]

I'm getting to the point where I can't make the payments and things are starting to catch up.

Have you considered approaching the lender or lenders and trying to negotiate a payment schedule that you can meet? In this economy, many lenders, especially of unsecured debt, will be grateful for the opportunity to work with you rather than just ending up on a BK docket.

[Janice A.]

Your car is safe from the debtor for it is on a joint name,

[ilike]

I am a new comer and would like to develop my skills about legal process outsourcing industries.

Legal business process outsourcing regarding bankruptcy laws is an interesting field and represents a niche legal industry aspect ratio. Good luck my friend!

[gary365]

Asking questions in an aggregate of professional lawyers is the best thing to do before you decide which of them serves you best. Furthermore, with this group of people, you can find out which among Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 is applicable for your bankruptcy filing.

bankruptcy lawyer Houston

[bankrupcyus]

All this questions in an aggregate of professional lawyers is the best thing to do before you decide which of them serves you best. You can find out which is the best Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 is applicable for your bankruptcy filing.

Bankruptcy Attorneys

[Bankrupty Lawyer]

Texas is a community property state, which means that most things that you purchase with your wife or husband while you are married are jointly owned by you and your spouse. This makes bankruptcy planning a little more complicated in Texas than in other states. See below for more information.

Bankruptcy Attorney Austin