What Will Happen to your House if you File for Bankruptcy?

The risk of losing your home can be one of the most daunting aspects of being in a tough financial situation. Many people fear that they will lose the most important asset they own: a place to live.  After trying solutions like loan modifications with mortgage companies, many people are faced with the option of filing for bankruptcy to help save their homes.  Fortunately, filing for bankruptcy can help you keep your home.

One of the most common reasons people file for bankruptcy is that they are trying to keep their homes.  When your home is set for foreclosure, one way to stop the bank from taking your home is to file a chapter 13 bankruptcy.  When you file a chapter 13 bankruptcy, an automatic stay goes into effect immediately.  The automatic stay will stop any foreclosure proceedings, and will, at the very least, give you more time in your home.  The chapter 13 bankruptcy will put all of your late payments, or arrears, into the chapter 13 repayment plan; this will give you a chance to catch up on arrears monthly over the length of your Chapter 13 plan. You will still be responsible for your ongoing mortgage payments, but as stated before, a chapter 13 bankruptcy can help you keep your home.

If you are interested in filing a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, there are also ways for you to keep your home.  Generally, if you are current on your home mortgage payments, you will be able to keep your home. However, this only applies if you do not have a large amount of equity in your home.  Should you have an excessive amount of equity in your home, the Trustee may decide that you need to sell your home in order to use the money to pay back some of your creditors.  Fortunately, each state has a certain set of what are called exemptions that apply to your property; there is a dollar amount allotted for different types of property that help debtors keep some of their assets.  For people who own homes, you can “exempt” a certain amount of equity in your home, allowing you to keep your house.  For example, in Missouri, the Homestead Exemption allows home owners to exempt up to $15,000 in equity in their homes.  This is an excellent option for people who have managed to stay current on their mortgage payments, but have been struggling due to other debts.

There seems to be a misconception that people who file for bankruptcy will lose their homes; however, in many cases, filing for bankruptcy can help home owners save their homes.  If you have questions about your home, please contact a St. Louis Bankruptcy attorney today!

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