Credit Card surviving Bankruptcy?

[SkilledOne]

Well, that was fast, IBroke!

Clearly, you are VERY into this - my gain, and GREAT!

I hear you about the SECURED nature of the property and the LIEN. I can tell you, though, that my mortgage statements always include the following statement, verbatim: "WE MAY CONTACT YOU IF PAYMENT IS NOT RECEIVED BY SCHEDULED DUE DATE." And, true to their word, when I missed my payments those two times in 01/2008 and 05/2009, they did pursue me by phone! Per your explanation, they may have violated the "permanent injunction" code, then, right?

Thinking of it, I recall that when we first filed, the lawyer specifically told me that my mortgage was EXEMPT and was not included in the debt-listing when we filed. I could almost swear on this point. Is that the reason why the mortgage company was able to "actively" pursue me once I missed my payment those two months? Is it possible that the rule changes that came into effect in OCTOBER 2005 is what requires all debt, including an active and current (on payments) mortgage, be included in a bankruptcy filing? I really should speak with an experienced lawyer about this.

One quick question: once my 7-year penalty expires in 4/2012 and all the negative accts are removed from my report (except the fact of the bk, itself) how is my relationship to my mortgage company affected? Especially since I did not re-affirm? I guess the lien is the only trump card they wield still?

I may call the mortgage company with your suggestion about reporting my payments (I am happy to assure them there'd be no lawsuit) once I've had a chance to talk with an experienced lawyer. I still plan to send the lawyer the addresses to fire out the letter to EXPERIAN and TRANSUNION. Maybe once an experienced bk lawyer examines my case, they'd call me to set my mind at ease.

I will definitely continue to share my experiences on this matter.

[IBroke]

Well, that was fast, IBroke!

Clearly, you are VERY into this - my gain, and GREAT!

I hear you about the SECURED nature of the property and the LIEN. I can tell you, though, that my mortgage statements always include the following statement, verbatim: "WE MAY CONTACT YOU IF PAYMENT IS NOT RECEIVED BY SCHEDULED DUE DATE." And, true to their word, when I missed my payments those two times in 01/2008 and 05/2009, they did pursue me by phone! Per your explanation, they may have violated the "permanent injunction" code, then, right?

If it's true what you posted in the next part, the permanent injunction does not apply because the mortgage was not part of your BK:

Thinking of it, I recall that when we first filed, the lawyer specifically told me that my mortgage was EXEMPT and was not included in the debt-listing when we filed. I could almost swear on this point. Is that the reason why the mortgage company was able to "actively" pursue me once I missed my payment those two months? Is it possible that the rule changes that came into effect in OCTOBER 2005 is what requires all debt, including an active and current (on payments) mortgage, be included in a bankruptcy filing? I really should speak with an experienced lawyer about this.

That is a good question. I just "entered" the field of BK about 2 years ago so I have basically no clue about the regulations prior to the law-change. IF the mortgage was NOT part of your petition and it was possible prior to October 2005 to exclude your mortgage in a CH7, THEN we are dealing with something else:

If the mortgage was indeed NOT part of the petition, the credit-bureaus are indeed reporting incorrectly. If the mortgage was NOT IIB, they mustn't report it as IIB. They should also report every payment you made.

On the downside, the lender can still actively collect because your personal liability is still there.

I have to admit that I never met anybody on this board who filed prior to the law-change so I assumed the mortgage was discharged as well. My bad.

One quick question: once my 7-year penalty expires in 4/2012 and all the negative accts are removed from my report (except the fact of the bk, itself) how is my relationship to my mortgage company affected? Especially since I did not re-affirm? I guess the lien is the only trump card they wield still?

The credit-reporting has no effect on your mortgage-contract. Now, since you just told me that the mortgage was NOT discharged, the debt is still there as well - not just the lien. Since you are in a non-recourse-State, that is not such a big problem as it would be in my State.

You couldn't reaffirm because your mortgage was not part of the BK. The original contract is still effective, so no reaffirmation came into play.

I may call the mortgage company with your suggestion about reporting my payments (I am happy to assure them there'd be no lawsuit) once I've had a chance to talk with an experienced lawyer. I still plan to send the lawyer the addresses to fire out the letter to EXPERIAN and TRANSUNION. Maybe once an experienced bk lawyer examines my case, they'd call me to set my mind at ease.

I will definitely continue to share my experiences on this matter.

The first thing you have to be 100% sure of is of the mortgage was indeed exempt of your BK or not. That is the question that decides the credit-reporting question. If you aren't 100% sure, have a lawyer figure it out for you.

If it was exempt, your payments should be reported and NO IIB-notation should be on the account.

Keep us up to date!

[SkilledOne]

The more I look into this, the more I don't like what I'm seeing and hearing. And you may be right, IBroke. But I'll keep fighting until there is a "legal" resolution. So here's some update. First the bad news...

I finally called and spoke with my mortgage company, and they FLATLY REFUSE to report my mortgage payments, saying that since I filed BK (even if I did not intend to include the mortgage, they consider it still included), they have a right not to report it. UNLESS I RE-AFFIRM, they say. But from reading comments from this blog and elsewhere, re-affirming doesn't help one's credit scores much, the BK remains (including the mortgage), and I only end up entangling myself should life throw me another bad loop.

Now the good news...

1. My attorney has written the MORTGAGE COMPANY (not the credit bureaus) a "mild" letter requesting that they report my payments. Salient portions:

"Mr. X (me) requests that you report his active mortgage to the three credit reporting agencies. This shall be considered Mr. X's formal and final request. If Mr. X's request is not met within 30 days of the date of this correspondence (4/11/2011), then Mr. X has indicated that he will seek additional legal assistance with this matter."

I am eager to read their formal response to this letter, even if they state what they told me over the phone. I WANT TO SEE IT IN (LEGAL) WRITING!

2. Since I still have about 20years on the mortgage, I'm thinking of re-financing by July 2012 (when the initial 7-year BK penalty falls off my credit report). Meantime, I'd be paying down my (new, post-BK) debt heavily to improve my credit-score even more.

So I wait to see what happens within the next month, and will keep y'all posted.

[iswmle]

Those crazy kids at WFNNB just gave me a credit line increase. My Victoria Secret card went from $830 to $1030. It is so odd, because shortly after my BK they increased it twice. I thought that would be the last time I saw a cli and next time they would see the BK on my public record and shut me down. The fact that I almost never use the card probably does not work in my favor, either.

Or maybe it does since they just increased the credit line. =/ So so far not only is this VS card my oldest account, it is my highest as well, beating out my CU card by $30, haha.