Confused about mortgage payments in chap 13

[911mom]

I'm going for consultation re: Chap 13, and i've really enjoyed all the informative info on this forum, i'm confused though...so, in a chap 13, am i allowed to keep paying my mortgage myself as usual? I am filing due to major credit card debt that i got into due to a bad divorce and no support..i want to keep paying my mortgage and second mortgage as is....i see some comments about filing re-affirmation then some say don't file this...the attny i'm seeing advertises no re-affirmation agreement necessary..help!!!!

[justbroke]

Whether you're allowed to directly pay the mortgage company is based on your District, whether you are past due on your mortgage, and whether or not you file a motion to pay outside the plan. What I've found, from being on this site for over 3 years, is that many people who pay outside the plan, end up in trouble. I will caveat that with the fact that the Trustee does get a percentage (up to 10%) of anything paid inside the plan. Sometimes it's better to pay outside the plan just to avoid the Trustee costs. My Trustee was making over $700 a month on my in-plan payments!

[momofthree]

We are paying outside the plan, but our mortgage was current on payments when we filed.

There are no reaffirmation agreements in a ch.13, only in ch.7.

[espo1357]

Yes, you simply make the mortgage payments separate. I have been doing this for about 2 years now, and I am current on everything.

good luck, and let us know if you have any further questions!

[jange]

We were current on the mortgage whenwe filed, so our attorney set up my plan for us to continue paying the mortgage ourselves. We have not had any issues.



19/60 payments done

[lrprn]

We paid our two mortgages directly ourselves throughout our five-year Ch 13 with no issues.

JustBroke is right - a few local courts will require that the trustee make all your asset payments with the associated trustee fee % for doing so added on each month. Your lawyer will know if your local court is one of those.

[SleepWellNow]

Please excuse my ignorance of Chapter 13 bankruptcies when I ask this question...if a mortgage payment is paid outside the plan, is the mortgage amount included in the bankruptcy? In other words, when the Chapter 13 is discharged, is the mortgage balance included or only those debts that were paid by the Trustee?

[forgotten]

Please excuse my ignorance of Chapter 13 bankruptcies when I ask this question...if a mortgage payment is paid outside the plan, is the mortgage amount included in the bankruptcy? In other words, when the Chapter 13 is discharged, is the mortgage balance included or only those debts that were paid by the Trustee?

A mortgage balance is only discharged in a CH13 if you are surrendering the home or you have a second lien that is being stripped by motion.

[SleepWellNow]

Thank you for your quick response. I started another thread with some questions but you may know this also...

I am trying to help a person who is facing foreclosure. She filed Chapter 13 BK in 2005 and was discharged in 2008. About 4 months prior to her discharge, she refinanced her first and second loans that were held by Bank of America. I asked her if her attorney knew about the refinance and if the Trustee knew about it. She told me she didn't think so. Can that be possible? Just prior to her BK, she became permanently (and seriously) disabled, her husband died (who took care of all the finances) and she was (and is) very confused. Is is even possible a person can refinance while in active Chapter 13 BK without the attorney and Trustee knowing about it? It appears she was making her mortgage payments outside of the plan.

[lrprn]

...if a mortgage payment is paid outside the plan, is the mortgage amount included in the bankruptcy?

If by "included in the bankruptcy" you mean is whatever is owed on home mortgage used to determine the 13 plan payment, then the answer is yes. All secured assets owned by the debtor and their current market values and loan amounts remaining have to be listed on the filing forms and are used to calculate the Ch 13 payment when filing.

In other words, when the Chapter 13 is discharged, is the mortgage balance included or only those debts that were paid by the Trustee?

If the trustee is one of those that requires their filers to allow the trustee to pay the mortgage during the life of the plan, whatever the trustee pays the mortgage company is considered paid just like the filer did it. If the filer pays the mortgage directly to the lender, the mortgage balance is reduced the same way.

I may not be understanding your question correctly, so if I missed the mark please share that so one of the members or mods can try again.