Did you give up your home in bk?

[kenshirley]

In our case yes. We could no longer maintain the acreage with it anyway and had been trying to sell it so we could move into our RV and travel. We owed less than 50% of what it was all worth prior to the big housing losses but it made no difference.
In order to do that we needed a little equity to pay off some other bills but the housing market was lousy and that was not happening.
Then my wife lost her job due to health and we did not have enough income to support everything so we just filed chapter 7.
No RV, no home and in a rental. But at least in retirement we have enough money to live now.
Many others are in worse shape by far.

[sunshine09]

We have been trying to sell our house for 5 years. We even tried a short sale since our house really went down in value.

Our last resort getting out of this house was filing for bk. We have heard that if you just walk away & let it foreclose, they can come back for you later on for the money. Not sure how true that is, so, we decided to get a fresh start...& finally get rid of our house!!! After the first appointment with our lawyer, it seemed too good to be true!! We aren't stuck here anymore!!

Our confirmation is for April 22. Any prayers are greatly appreciated!

[spearmint]

It seems strange to read that some people are delighted to get rid of their homes. However, I am beginning to understand since I am entertaining the idea but it is so hard.

[sunshine09]

Well, this was our first home. It's just a starter home. It was perfect for us at the time, but now with four kids, our little 3bd/1ba home is very crowded! There are many other reasons why we have been wanting to move for years. I was so excited when we first put the house up for sale years ago....no one knew how much our house's value would plummet. It's just a sad situation & getting worse.

We'll be moving to a bigger, 4 bedroom, 3 bath apartment. Finally some room to breathe!! Also, moving south is a huge relief. I have terrible winter depression.

I wish we would of did this years ago. It would of spared me some of the emotional suffering I endured in this home.

On to a brighter (and warmer!) future!!

[shell]

When you place your home in your bankruptcy, what is the standard amount of time you have before they confiscate the house. Also, if you are in the petition phase of your bankruptcy can you still find rentals?

[justbroke]

There is no standard and there is no confiscation. Your home can only be taken away from you in a foreclosure procedure based on your State's particular foreclosure laws. In some States, it's done through a Power of Sale clause in the Deed of Trust, so these States tend to have quicker foreclosures. In other States, it's a "judicial" foreclosure, is done in court, and can take many months to foreclose. For example, Floridians are enjoying 7 to 11 months in their homes after default.

People have found rentals, but you should be saving your money (from not paying the mortgage), in case you are met with high deposit requirements. I have found that management companies are more sympathetic these days IF you have very strong employment (employed with same employer for years) and have NO evictions in your profile.

[gmk]

We are giving up the house. 2 primary reasons: Pre-BK there was no way to support the mortgage payments so we stopped paying 7 months ago. 2nd the prospects of finding viable employment for what I do in this area are slim and none so a relo is the only option. We hate to give up the house and view foreclosure as having more of an emotional letdown than BK but circumstances prevail. Our predicament is that, even though the lender is moving apace, it will take time to finalize and we want to get out of the area ASAP. I don't like abandoning the house (insurance, yard upkeep, etc.) but see few options except DIL but I'm under the impression that our local bank lender has a bunch of properties already and won't play ball on this.

The first court action, the start of formal foreclosure is in a couple of weeks and I'm going to call my BK attorney to see if I should approach the bank before or after the hearing, which we aren't attending to try a DIL. My BK attorney also does work for the bank so I'm also going to see if he can broker the deal? If not we could still own the deed for a long time, which we don't want.

[packerfan]

We walked on ours...I tried to save it and all it did was get me deeper into a whole leading to our filing BK...We owed $176,000 on the 1st, $30,000 on a home equity line and then were hit with $20,000 in assessments..My mortgage went from $1400 a month before a modification to $1100 only to shoot back up to $1500 before we made our first modified payment..this did not include the equity line which was interest only at $220 a month and the addition of a water bill, hook up costs etc we were staring at almost $3000 a month just to pay for our home...the assessments were the straw that broke the camels back and we began to realize it just wasn't worth it..I now rent a beautiful brand new home for $800 month (secure land lord that gave us a lease with option to buy in 5 years)

We also gave up both our vehicles husband bought a used work van (he's a contractor) for $5000 and I drive an old mini van my brother in law gave to me..

Were hoping as well to get a complete fresh start with our Chapter 7...

[packerfan]

It was easier for me that it was for my husband..I think because I watched my mom bury herself in a home she couldn't afford and refused to give up when she could no longer take care of it...by the time we got to making the decision to walk I had gotten to a point where I pretty much hated the house we were in because quite frankly it was the root of what led us to have to file bk...

We were able to squeeze a little over a year out of the house before we left and could have gotten another 4 months (bank kept rescheduling the auction and I wanted out before a sheriff showed up at our door and told us to get out) unfortunately we were unable to save money as we had hoped as our income got smaller and smaller each month (we had a small remodeling co we were forced to shut down and the last few months at the house the only income we had was my unemployment check)

[ColoradoBell]

I filed BK to keep my home, which my ex was trying to sell to an intimate friend for 1/3 its appraised value. X refused to sell me his share, even tho I offered more than the Buyers. Had it closed, I wouldn't even had gotten my homestead exemption. I'm hoping the BK court will let me buy out X's share because owning is cheaper than paying rent plus, someday, I'll be able to sell the house and get more than what I have in it.

It seems to me that even if your house is underwater, if you like livingin it, can afford its mortgage and upkeep, then you are better off keeping it and its tax advantages rather than renting.

[LadyInTheRed]

It seems to me that even if your house is underwater, if you like livingin it, can afford its mortgage and upkeep, then you are better off keeping it and its tax advantages rather than renting.

I agree. My house is worth only about half what I paid for it 5 1/2 years ago. Even after the lien strip, I'm underwater by about 40%. But, without the second mortgage, I can easily afford the 1st and I can't rent an equivalent home for less than the mortgage, tax and insurance. I could rent an apartment for a little less, but quality of life has to play a role, IMO. I'm paying down principal and eventually I will have equity again. I'll have my mortgage paid off before I retire. I don't expect to be able to save enough for a down payment on another home and get it paid off before I retire. I have no desire to move and my job is secure. If for some reason I do lose my job, I have as much opportunity for employment here than anywhere else. Many would say that if the house is that far underwater, you should give it up. But, I think there are more factors to consider.

[espo1357]

I agree. My house is worth only about half what I paid for it 5 1/2 years ago. Even after the lien strip, I'm underwater by about 40%. But, without the second mortgage, I can easily afford the 1st and I can't rent an equivalent home for less than the mortgage, tax and insurance. I could rent an apartment for a little less, but quality of life has to play a role, IMO. I'm paying down principal and eventually I will have equity again. I'll have my mortgage paid off before I retire. I don't expect to be able to save enough for a down payment on another home and get it paid off before I retire. I have no desire to move and my job is secure. If for some reason I do lose my job, I have as much opportunity for employment here than anywhere else. Many would say that if the house is that far underwater, you should give it up. But, I think there are more factors to consider.

I hear ya Lady, but wouldn't it make more sense to walk and save the money from the missed payments, and then just re-enter the market?

I am in a similiar situation, and I am thinking of just walking and then buying a condo cash, as I have no kids or wife, and don't need an almost 2000 sq ft home that I have now.

Long term thinking is the way to go, and your points make sense, but I think its important to look at it the other way.

Also, an advantage of staying put is that you don't have to pay the transaction fees associated with a new property and you don't have to take the risk of having neighbors that are losers.

[bkinparadise]

I kept my home even though my wife and I are about $80K underwater. My wife didn't want to give it up and after my personal Ch 7, we were able to eek out a little better financial life. I'm hoping that the housing market will rebound...someday. Hopefully then we won't be underwater by then.

[espo1357]

I kept my home even though my wife and I are about $80K underwater. My wife didn't want to give it up and after my personal Ch 7, we were able to eek out a little better financial life. I'm hoping that the housing market will rebound...someday. Hopefully then we won't be underwater by then.

Its awfully optimistic. But, you could be right. Also, if you have a very low interest rate (under 6 percent, fixed), then its not a big deal if you plan to stay in the home for the rest of your life.

Then again, you could also just re-enter the market after living rent free for at least one year.

so much to consider, it make my mindo get twisted up.

[LadyInTheRed]

I hear ya Lady, but wouldn't it make more sense to walk and save the money from the missed payments, and then just re-enter the market?

I am in a similiar situation, and I am thinking of just walking and then buying a condo cash, as I have no kids or wife, and don't need an almost 2000 sq ft home that I have now.

Long term thinking is the way to go, and your points make sense, but I think its important to look at it the other way.

Also, an advantage of staying put is that you don't have to pay the transaction fees associated with a new property and you don't have to take the risk of having neighbors that are losers.

I did consider walking away and getting back into the market later. But, there is no guarantee that I'd be able to live in the house long enough to save for a down payment before getting foreclosed on. I definitely wouldn't save enough to pay cash for a home. I like where I am and really don't want to move. I especially don't want to move into an apartment while I wait to qualify for a mortgage. I also don't want to shop for a house again. We must have looked at 100 before finding this one, no exaggeration. I put my offer in on this house with the expectation that I would eventually pay off that amount. With my second stripped I have $88k less to pay. So, I'm further ahead than I expected to be.