Should You File For Bankruptcy To Stop Foreclosure?

By Ginger Taylor

Knowing that your home is facing foreclosure is one of the most stressful events you can experience. Chances are, you would do almost anything to be able to stop worrying and know that your home is safe. When you file for chapter thirteen, you are able to stop foreclosure on your home.

Chapter thirteen bankruptcy offers a way to keep the mortgage company from foreclosing on your home. When you file, the foreclosure stops immediately until the bankruptcy process is completed. With this type of bankruptcy, you submit a plan to repay your debts. However, this plan is scrutinized by your creditors and must be accepted by a judge in order for the bankruptcy to proceed.

Before you file for bankruptcy, you will be required to attend a credit counseling session. This can help you determine whether you really need to file for bankruptcy or if your debts can be repaid in some other way. If the credit counseling agency prepares a debt repayment plan for you, it must be submitted to the court along with your bankruptcy filing.

You are given fourteen days from the time you file for chapter thirteen bankruptcy until your proposed repayment plan has to be on file with the court. This window can enable you to go ahead and file if you need to get the foreclosure on your home stopped before you can finish your plan.

After filing, a creditor's meeting will be set up. You must appear at this meeting to answer your creditors' questions about your repayment plan. Some of your creditors may question the amount you are proposing to pay. They want to make sure that you will not have any money left over after paying your debts and necessary living expenses.

Once your creditors have had a chance to object to the provisions of your plan, the judge will review it and make a decision. If your repayment plan is approved, you will have to make bimonthly or monthly payments to the court's trustee. The money will then be distributed to your creditors according to the plan.

The downside to using bankruptcy to avoid foreclosure is that sometimes it only postpones it, and then you end up with both a foreclosure and a bankruptcy on your credit. It is often difficult to stick to the repayment plan, and if you fail, you can still lose your home. But before you file chapter thirteen bankruptcy explore all possible options, talk to an experienced loan modification attorney first.

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