CH7 and Property Tax

[buffetbuster]

Our property taxes aren't escrowed into our mortgage and we have to come up with the payment by the end of the month to avoid tax sale advertisement for a tax sale in September. With paying our attorney for the Ch7 we are in, it doesn't appear we are going to be able to pay our property tax easily.

I haven't had a chance to talk to my attorney yet, but is there any way anything can be done about our property tax in a CH7?

Thanks!

[daylate]

I guess it depends on what you intend to do with your house in bk. If you are going to surrender it, from what I've read here is that a lien will be filed against your property and the bank will pay the taxes before it sells it after foreclosure. If you are planning on keeping it the same lien will be levied but the bank won't pay it off. Good luck.

[tobee43]

if you have a lien on the house for taxes and you have a mortgage even if you don't have an escrow account, most likely your bank is not really wanting your house to go up for tax sale and get eaten up for a tax lien.

in most cases the bank holding the mortgages picks up the taxes. also ditto on what daylate says about if you planning on keeping the house and also best of luck!!

[frogger]

So are you worried about the taxes being sold or are you worried about having your name in the paper?

[buffetbuster]

I plan on keeping my house...we can afford to make the mortgage payments, but with all the debt we had before the bk, we weren't able to save up for our property taxes...which is when we realized it was time to file. I'm not so much worried to have my name in the paper as I am to not having the house up for tax sale.

Am I understanding the answers above correctly, that in a CH7, it can help me avoid tax sale?

[debee]

The automatic stay will stop the tax sale for now. The taxing authority will be able to resume with the sale once you are discharged, or sooner if they file a motion to lift the stay and it's granted.

[frogger]

Once your taxes are sold, you have 12 months in which to "buy them back" and redeem your interest in the house. That gives you a year to come up with the money, however it will probably cost you more.

[tobee43]

I plan on keeping my house...we can afford to make the mortgage payments, but with all the debt we had before the bk, we weren't able to save up for our property taxes...which is when we realized it was time to file. I'm not so much worried to have my name in the paper as I am to not having the house up for tax sale.

Am I understanding the answers above correctly, that in a CH7, it can help me avoid tax sale?

if your keeping the house they you'll, in most states, have to pay the back taxes after the auto stay which was put in place when you filed. once that is lifted they will go after you for the taxes and proceed.
your back property taxes are not per se dischargeable, in many jurisdictions, but check your state. property taxes will become a lien as soon as the tax becomes assessed, which then attaches to the property as a lien, and takes PRIORITY over the mortgage.

keeping that in mind, i would ask your atty about whether you can include property taxes in your jurisdictions. you might be best to work something out with them so when the stay is lifted you'd able to stop the house from eventually being sold for back taxes.