Schedule D- Should this be listed?

[lowquote]

Just a quick question, I am filing ch.7 and my attorney suggested that we list my wifes vehicle and creditor information on the Schedule D because we live in a Community property state (CA) and even though the vehicle is worth less than what we owe he suggested we list it here because by community property law I own half. We are not filing jointly and I am not on the vehicle loan so my thought is that we should not list her vehicle and the lender info anywhere.

Am I off in thinking this? Also, if we did list the vehicle would this have any adverse affect on my wifes credit/loan.

I realize I may be overthinking this but then again I do not want her involved at all with this filing.

Thank you very much in advance for any advice.

[ToughTimes]

If your wife acquired this vehicle and loan after you two became married, and if it was not a gift or inheritance specifically to only her, it's community property.

Possible perq: We had no intention of keeping the one vehicle we had with a loan on it, and we didn't keep it. However, the lender did make a very attractive reaffirmation offer. Dramatically reduced the balance owing and the monthly payment amount.

Others will have more informed opinions as to how this may or may not affect your wife's credit.

[lowquote]

Thank you very much for your reply Tough. I appreciate your insight. The one area that may or may not make a difference and where I may have overlooked was the fact that the loan in my wifes name is for $25,000, and the vehicle is only worth $18,500. Since there is no value (actually upside down), and we intend to keep it does that change anything? If there is no equity I would imagine that it is not an asset and would not need to be listed anywhere or am I off?

Again, I am not on the loan and my wife is not filing, so I am having a hard time grasping why it needs to be involved.

[ToughTimes]

If the vehicle was acquired after you two became married, it is community property, as is the liability for the loan. That is why it may be to your advantage to have it listed.

I believe your attorney is giving you good advice, though you may wish to discuss potential outcomes further with him or her. The offer my lender made reduced the loan principal amount to below what I could have sold the vehicle for. It also reduced the payments considerably; about 2/3 less than they were. Your attorney will have an opinion as to whether or not you are likely to negotiate something choice like this with a reaffirmation for the vehicle. That would benefit both you and your wife.

I don't know how your filing would affect your wife's credit overall, but it seems to me that, as long as the vehicle payments are made on time, there's no reason for the lender to report anything other than "paid as agreed" on the loan. The BK is a public record item. I don't know all the ins and outs of the reporting rules, but I do know I'd be filing disputes if any public record for my husband that did not involve me showed up on my credit report, and that makes me think that if you file in your name only it should not be reported on her credit report.