Getting ready to go BK is getting expensive

[teresa]

I don't plan on including my home mortgage in my BK. How bad will it screw me up if I miss a payment or two before I file? I've read that you have 2 years to repay arrearages in a CH13, but can you do that without actually putting your house in the BK?
Thanks
Teresa

[debtisbad]

Teresa,

I filed today. I am including my home mortgage in bankrupcy. I may be wrong and someone can correct me if I am. Anyway, I will continue to make payments on the house. I just will not reaffirm the debt. That way if something happens after the BK and I cannot make the payment let say. Then the house sells for less than what I owe on it. I do not want them to come after me for the negative equity. I am just looking to protect myself should this real estate bubble burst.

[teresa]

What happens at the end of BK if you don't reaffirm? Do you then start making the orginal regular payments after the BK is closed?
thanks

[debtisbad]

Yes, I plan on making original payments. Now I know they are going to call me night and day to get me to reaffirm but I will NOT. NO WAY! They will not foreclose in this state unless you are 3 months behind and I am not. But I may decide to be in the future.

[teresa]

What is the pro/con of reaffirming and not reaffirming?

What's the downside to not reaffirming? How much of your payment in BK is going to your house? Did you say that after your BK is done, then you will continue your original payments? Why did you include your house in your BK?

[13inOR]

Teresa, I would think if you are behind a couple months they wouldnt have time to do a whole lot to you and I dont know why you couldnt then, add those arrearages into your chapter 13. We had our arrearages in ours. We continued to make the regular payment each month from then on (that part is VERY important if you want to keep your house!!!)
Someone else on here may know more about why this might not work, but I sure dont know why it wouldnt, then you could use that money to pay your lawyers fees.

[SinkingFast]

I'm probably jinxing it by saying so, but we're 3 months behind. So far all we've gotten is a letter of Breach and Notice to Accelerate. Countrywide hasn't done anything else yet that I know of. Our Cure date, the pay up or else date, was March 18 and we still haven't heard anything from them. In fact, I spoke with them late last week, after the Cure date, and they still at that point, said if I could send in at least one payment, it would put everything on hold.

Other people have paid their mortgage arrears in their Ch 13 plans. Don't see why you can't also.

[teresa]

Are you planning on letting your home go, including it in the BK, or what?
thanks

[SinkingFast]

It's going in the BK. We've moved on outa state. Been trying to sell the house for ages now and nobody's bought.

We finally have a contingent offer with a wierd buyer. He started out FSBO and finally listed in the MLS last week. Well, gee, duh, 6 weeks of no calls or shows does kinda tell you something.

The offer we accepted from him was just barely enough to pay the mortgage, the realtors, and our docs fees. Last week he was trying to get in touch with me but I had changed my cell phone number so he couldn't. Turns out he's wanting us to lower the price on our house so he can lower the price on his house. I'm like, WHAT??!!

So anyway the house is going in the BK.

[13inOR]

SF- I know what you mean about wierd offers. We were selling a home 10 years ago in another city, and our requirementswere simple. We were buying it on contract from my father in law, he would continue to carry the contract for whoever bought it, but we had to have $10,000 down to get our own money out of it, which we had to have to move, etc.
We got the dumbest offer--the guy wanted us to trade straight across for a shacky house he had in town that he owed twice as much on, and no down payment, and since we were relocating, really made NO SENSE on top of the obvious financial part of it.
Needless to say, we turned it down and in a few days got exactly what we
were asking for.
I guess they figure it cant hurt to ask.

[edwards2]

teresa - the downside of not reaffirming is the company will not send you statements or report how you make your payments to the credit bureaus.

[keepmine]

I just will not reaffirm the debt. That way if something happens after the BK and I cannot make the payment let say.

It;s my understanding that under bk reform, you no longer have this option. If you wish to keep secured property, you have to reaffirm.

[SinkingFast]

The thing is this stinking contingent offer is probably prohibiting other potential buyers from even making an offer. Why get your hopes up when the first buyer can come in, utilize his kick-out, and take the house right out from under you.

We'd be better off to not have this contingent offer at this point I think. We've had several serious buyers who've been down to us and another, and they always go the other way. Ours is contingent, the other property isn't.