It's finally happened...

[sjr19]

I was served today by a sheriff for a debt I owe chase bank. I'm really nervous. I have a lot of questions, hopefully some of them can get answered!

I am in Pennsylvania, just so you all know..


1. Should I attempt to contact the firm suing me and work on a payment plan? I could do it with this one, but if others come out of the woodwork and sue as well, I'd have no other option but to file for bk. If I were to file after that point, could the debt i was sued for still be included?

2. Let's say they win a judgement against me. I know they can't garnish wages in PA for debts. What happens then? The house my wife and I live in is not in our names (her parents have helped us get out first home), my car is financed thru Ford. I can stop my direct deposits and go to a live check. Can they send someone in to the house to look at what I have and walk out with my TV/Computer, for example? What can they take? I live with my wife, how can they determine what is OK and what's not OK to take?

That's my immediate worries right now, I'm sure I'll think of more. The court date is the first week of September! I'm terrified! Anything you can offer of advice would be helpful. Thank you all.

[eddiep]

It is not as bad as you may think.

I was sued too and yes the debt can be included in bk if you decide to file later. I don't know if you can or should negotiate with them. If you have other creditors that you have not paid and can not get them to agree too you will just be throwing away you money. If you are in the same situation with several creditors you may want to consult with a few bk attorneys before you agree to any payment plans to find out if bk is your best option. Admitting that you need to file is often the hardest part of filing.

You can file an appearance with the court which could buy you about 60 days before a judgement is handed down.

If you do not own the home they can not place a lien on it.

In my area (not sure if this is true in every district) the next step would be the creditor will file a Motion for Periodic Payments. At this point the court will request all kinds of financial information and information about all your assets to determine how much you can afford to pay them and whether you have any assets that could be liquidated to satify the creditor. The same as bk without the protection!

There are many, many good people (myself included) who have made financial mistakes or who were taken down by the economy. Don't rule out getting protection from your creditors through the bk court, trust me you are not alone, and often it is the only way to protect yourself!

[sjr19]

It is not as bad as you may think.

I was sued too and yes the debt can be included in bk if you decide to file later. I don't know if you can or should negotiate with them. If you have other creditors that you have not paid and can not get them to agree too you will just be throwing away you money. If you are in the same situation with several creditors you may want to consult with a few bk attorneys before you agree to any payment plans to find out if bk is your best option. Admitting that you need to file is often the hardest part of filing.

You can file an appearance with the court which could buy you about 60 days before a judgement is handed down.

If you do not own the home they can not place a lien on it.

In my area (not sure if this is true in every district) the next step would be the creditor will file a Motion for Periodic Payments. At this point the court will request all kinds of financial information and information about all your assets to determine how much you can afford to pay them and whether you have any assets that could be liquidated to satify the creditor. The same as bk without the protection!

There are many, many good people (myself included) who have made financial mistakes or who were taken down by the economy. Don't rule out getting protection from your creditors through the bk court, trust me you are not alone, and often it is the only way to protect yourself!

Thank you, I will look into this. But if they do get a judgement, and i'm married (and the only one being sued) how do i find out what they could take, in theory? can they walk out with my wife's TV from the house I live in that's not in my name? LOL I don't know how any of this works.

[eddiep]

Oh the wife's tv? thats a likely story

It will be more civilized than a raid where the creditor runs in and grabs anything of value. In court, under oath, you may be asked what assets could be liquidated. But chances are your I mean your wife's tv will be fine.

Not sure if PA is a community property state or not, if so, they could take "her" tv.

Where is bigboy when you need him? Look for his posts, he is very, very knowledgeable about all things collections.

[sjr19]

LOL I see what you mean, luckily I don't believe PA is a community property state so at least I got that going for me.... and I will look for bigboy's posts as well. Thanks

[catleg]

I think as a practical matter seizing "stuff" besides cars is very difficult outside of community property states, since you can always point at whatever they want to take and say "it's my wife's". Even in CP states you could say "it's my neighbor's i'm just borrowing it" and what can they do? I guess at some point there's a presumption of ownership but in a husband/wife situation where does that kick in?

So really enforcing a judgment comes down to property whose ownership cannot be disputed, so bank accounts and wages plus any property that is registered with the government such as cars, boats, houses, etc.

[I_Suck]

So if your spouse has a judgement against her, what can they do with your home? Force you to sell it to get the proceeds or is the home exempt?

[sjr19]

Thanks guys, that's good to know. Appreciate your responses.

So I guess I have one more question... if i were to file Chapter 13 (i'm sure this has been asked before, but i can't find exactly the answer i'm looking for!), it looks like I'd be doing the 3 year plan because of income... With a typical repayment plan, are ALL my expenses taken into account, and then what's leftover going to the debtors?

For example, will they allow me to set aside money for my electric, phone/tv/internet (bundled) bill, car insurance, car payment, water bill, etc and THEN pay them? or does the trustee pay all that? Sorry, I shouldn't have alot of questions after this i hope!

[Violet]

I think as a practical matter seizing "stuff" besides cars is very difficult outside of community property states, since you can always point at whatever they want to take and say "it's my wife's".

So since I live with my parents they're not gonna come over and take my record collection or my parents' TV, right?

Actually someone I know filed BK not long after buying $6,000 worth of furniture. Her lawyer actually told her to say that she'd sold it to pay bills. I don't think anyone challenged or asked about it, and she got to keep everything.

[catleg]

So since I live with my parents they're not gonna come over and take my record collection or my parents' TV, right?

Actually someone I know filed BK not long after buying $6,000 worth of furniture. Her lawyer actually told her to say that she'd sold it to pay bills. I don't think anyone challenged or asked about it, and she got to keep everything.

I believe you are correct.

A little edgy behavior for an attorney, but glad to hear he was looking out for her.

[catleg]

So if your spouse has a judgement against her, what can they do with your home? Force you to sell it to get the proceeds or is the home exempt?

It all depends on your state.

[IBroke]

They are a true pain to deal with. I have about 20 creditors and they were the only one who had to sue me. I even had to come to a local law-firm for an "interview" about my financial situation. And anytime I obtain "new credit" (the last time, a $1K SECURED loan), they want to see documents I provided. Big Brother is watching you...

[eddiep]

Thanks guys, that's good to know. Appreciate your responses.

So I guess I have one more question... if i were to file Chapter 13 (i'm sure this has been asked before, but i can't find exactly the answer i'm looking for!), it looks like I'd be doing the 3 year plan because of income... With a typical repayment plan, are ALL my expenses taken into account, and then what's leftover going to the debtors?

For example, will they allow me to set aside money for my electric, phone/tv/internet (bundled) bill, car insurance, car payment, water bill, etc and THEN pay them? or does the trustee pay all that? Sorry, I shouldn't have alot of questions after this i hope!

Yes you are right about the utilities, car insurance etc, you will pay them yourself and whatever is left over is what you pay into the plan. There are standard exemptions here is a link.

http://www.usdoj.gov/ust/eo/bapcpa/20090315/meanstesting.htm

and here is a link to Schedule J to play around with, I found this very helpful when preparing the information for my lawyer.

http://www.wiw.uscourts.gov/bankruptcy/fillable_forms/SchedJCurExpend_B6J.pdf

If you typically spend more than the standards you will be required to prove it and justify why you need to spend more than the standard.

If you own a home, your mortgage is what it is, they can not deny you that. But any other increase to these amounts would need to be documented and approved by the trustee.

[IBroke]

Who is a pain to deal with? Who sued you? You were served a summons for a debtors exam and appeared? Who wants to see your documents when you get new credit?

Sorry but your post is very confusing and without the other info makes no sense. It sounds like you were sued and had then debtors exam and now are in a CH 13 plan.

Chase is a pain to deal with. They sued me. Yes, I was served a summons and appeared.

The law-firm working for Chase is monitoring my credit. As soon as a new creditor shows up, they send out a subpoena to that creditor and ask for credit-applications etc.. I didn't file BK.

Sorry if that was a bit unclear.

[catleg]

Chase is a pain to deal with. They sued me. Yes, I was served a summons and appeared.

The law-firm working for Chase is monitoring my credit. As soon as a new creditor shows up, they send out a subpoena to that creditor and ask for credit-applications etc.. I didn't file BK.

Sorry if that was a bit unclear.

Now THAT'S interesting.