Debtors who are facing an eviction could receive protection from the eviction process by filing for bankruptcy; however, this protection is dependent on how far in the eviction process your landlord is when the bankruptcy is filed. Whether an eviction judgment has been obtained by the landlord makes all the difference in whether a bankruptcy filing will hold off the proceedings. If you are behind on rent payments when you file for bankruptcy, it is likely that your landlord may have already filed an action in state court against you to evict you. If the landlord already has a judgment for possession of the apartment (or property) when you file for bankruptcy, the automatic stay protection you would normally receive by filing for bankruptcy will not help you. The landlord is entitled to proceed with the eviction just as if the bankruptcy was never filed. However, if you file for bankruptcy BEFORE the court issues a judgment for possession, the automatic stay provided by the bankruptcy will prohibit the landlord from trying to evict you for being behind on rent payments prior to filing.
The only way that the landlord would be able to evict you post filing for bankruptcy would be to file a motion for relief from automatic stay with the bankruptcy court. The landlord can ask the court to lift the automatic stay to begin or continue eviction on any grounds. Although the automatic stay is automatically applied by filing for bankruptcy, unless the landlord already has a judgment, the Judge can also lift the automatic stay upon landlord’s request. Given that the tenancy in the property is not something that is part of the bankruptcy estate that the trustee can sell to pay your creditors, bankruptcy courts generally lean toward allowing landlords to exercise their property rights to protect their property regardless of the tenant’s debt problems.
An exemption to everything listed above is if the landlord is seeking an eviction because you endangered the property or engaged in illegal use of controlled substances on the property. In this situation, the landlord can evict you regardless of the status of the bankruptcy. This is the case even after the bankruptcy filing date if the eviction is based on property endangerment or drug use. Additionally, if you do not stay current on post-petition rent payments, the landlord is free to seek eviction on the post-filing rent payments. This is why it is also important to stay current on your rent payments after you file for bankruptcy. Anything you owe that is incurred after you file for bankruptcy cannot be added to your bankruptcy.
It is important to note that if you are current on rent payments and you file Chapter 7 or Chapter 13, the bankruptcy should have no effect on your lease and tenancy. Although your landlord may not be comfortable with the idea that you filed for bankruptcy, they likely will not even find out about it. If you are current on your rent payments, you do not have to list the landlord as a creditor who would be entitled to notice of the proceedings. They would not receive notice of your bankruptcy along with other creditors.
If you are facing an eviction, or have questions regarding bankruptcy, contact a St. Louis Bankruptcy attorney today!