Chapter 13 Question

[gunner01]

We are filing our chapter 13 in August but, I am concerned about our house. At this time we are not including our house in our BK but, have requested a loan modification from our lender, since our income has changed. If during the BK something was to change like income again, lose of job, ect. What does one do to include the house? Is this at all possible?

[lrprn]

At this time we are not including our house in our BK....

Your house is always "included in your BK" because it's listed on your Ch 13 filing forms as an asset. Do you mean that you are making your mortgage payments directly to the mortgage lender(s) rather than your trustee making them for you?

If during the BK something was to change like income again, lose of job, ect. What does one do to include the house? Is this at all possible?

If the circumstances that change are long-lasting or permanent (job loss, significant reduction in income, divorce, etc.) then you can work with your lawyer to file an amended Ch 13 plan.

About the house....if your original plan included keeping the home and now you want to surrender it, again the answer is to discuss with your lawyer how this impacts your plan (in some districts losing your mortgage payments could cause your monthly payments to increase accordingly because you now have more disposable income unless the increase can be offset with increased living expenses), and then file an amended Ch 13 plan with your local bk court.