Thinking of surrendering my home

[Gabriel_S]

My home was included in my chapter 7 but it was entered as intending to keep. I missed Octobers property taxes and the bank created an escrow for me. Today i got a note from them saying they want to charge me an additional $450.00/month on top of my mortgage. I simply can't afford This! Am I obliged to keep this home or can I still surrender it along with the property taxes added to my new escrow account?

Man, just when i thought things were looking up it gets nuts again!

[Duke89]

I thought you had a certain amount of time to cancel things like reaffirmation agreements and the like. You need to speak to your attorney if you have one. Understand that surrendering your house in bankruptcy will not preclude a foreclosure from happening. Once you make the decision to surrender the house your lender will usually file a motion with the court asking for the automatic stay to be lifted as it pertains to their collateral (your house) so that they can start foreclosure proceedings. The foreclosure proceeding is the legal process they will have to go through in order to get you removed from the title so that they can sell the property. The good news is that by surrendering the house in bankruptcy you will not be responsible for any deficiency that arises out of the foreclosure auction.

[TEW]

your ok just DO NOT reaffirm the loan and let them take it.

[debtmonster]

Give it back and rent. Stay in the house as long as you can until the sheriff tells you to leave. All that time you can be putting money away towards the rental. I have a friend who has lived in her house for 13 months so far without paying the mortgage, property taxes or home owner's insurance.

The more people keep doing this, the more they will flood the market with homes which will help people like us stay in our homes longer so we can bankroll some cash. It would be great if I could stay here for 24 months. I could then have the money for the rental and also save the money to replace one of our vehicles without getting in debt again.

[StartingOver08]

Contact your attorney - he has to file a motion to surrender the home in your BK right away, before discharge.

The reason he has to file the motion is because on your petition you had indicated you intended to keep your home. You want that shown in your petition that you want to surrender. Now all the associated debt, (re taxes, arreages on the payment and escrow arreages) get discharged too.

It is far better to surrender your home then to keep it and find out that the increases in escrow require a foreclosure later.

[Gabriel_S]

Ok, I'm kind of confused here. I have not nor have any intentions of reaffirming my home? I was under the impression that if i don't reaffirm, that relieves me from any financial responsibilities in the case of a foreclosure regardless if I stated on my petition that I intended to continue paying for the home.

[StartingOver08]

I thought you said you had filed intending to keep your home. If you did not file that way, then you don't have to do anything.

In the Ch 7 Individual Debtor's Statement of Intention there are two choices: 1) Surrender and 2) Retain. If you select "Retain" then you have 3 other choices: Redeem the property, reaffirm the debt and other.

I guess I misunderstood your first post - I had read it as you had selected Retain rather than surrender.

[Gabriel_S]

I thought you said you had filed intending to keep your home. If you did not file that way, then you don't have to do anything.

In the Ch 7 Individual Debtor's Statement of Intention there are two choices: 1) Surrender and 2) Retain. If you select "Retain" then you have 3 other choices: Redeem the property, reaffirm the debt and other.

I guess I misunderstood your first post - I had read it as you had selected Retain rather than surrender.

X

[StartingOver08]

Well then, you are going to want to file a motion amending debtor's statement of intention, because now you want to surrender rather than retain. Your attorney should do this for no extra money. Mine did not charge anything - it took just a few minutes. The paralegal e-mailed the document, I downloaded, signed it and e-mailed it back. They then filed it electronically. Ask your attorney about it.

[Gabriel_S]

Well then, you are going to want to file a motion amending debtor's statement of intention, because now you want to surrender rather than retain. Your attorney should do this for no extra money. Mine did not charge anything - it took just a few minutes. The paralegal e-mailed the document, I downloaded, signed it and e-mailed it back. They then filed it electronically. Ask your attorney about it.

Thanks, problem being, my attorney is out of town for a few weeks and won't reply to any emails I've sent. If I simply don't reaffirm and stop paying, am I still liable for the escrow and foreclosure costs etc?

[StartingOver08]

No, you are not liable because you did not sign a reaffirmation agreement. The reffirmation has to be signed and filed to be effective.

[Gabriel_S]

No, you are not liable because you did not sign a reaffirmation agreement. The reffirmation has to be signed and filed to be effective.

Whew....thanks a ton StartingOver. I really wanted to keep my home but that extra 450/month makes it near impossible now.