Almost ready to file Chapter 7

Anonymous · ‎04-15-2018

I am in a rare situation where I am about to file Chapter 7 with a credit score of 725 and no missed payments. I was divorced in 2006 and my ex was awarded a mobile home in the divorce. 12 years later, I received a phone call from a collector demanding payment. According to the divorce decree I hold no interest, claim, etc to the property. However, he has never refinanced the mortgage and it has since been written off as a loss by the mortgage company. THis negative mark was placed on my credit report and dropped my score to 654. I had the company vaildate the debt and in doing so the lender removed the deliquent information from my credit report. Hence, my 725 credit score with no missed, late payments etc. Because I could still be sued by the collectors on the note, and do not have any means to reclaim the property without paying hefty attorney fees plus the cost of relocating a mobile home, I am going to have to file bankruptcy. How badly will this damage my credit score and will I be able to re-establish credit with credit card companies that I have maintained a good standing with and a zero balance? How long will it take to get my score back up in to the 700s?

CH-7-Mission-Accomplished · ‎04-15-2018

Don't file too quickly! Do you know when your ex defaulted on the loan? This could very well be outside the statute of limitations to collect. You should know that for sure. Also in your case, I would not file before I was actually served with a lawsuit. If this is a collection account, you might be able to settle it for 10 cents on the dollar. If you file BK, they will get nothing.

You are the first person I've ever advised not to file, but what I'm saying is not yet. How much is the debt? Give us more information and we can try to help. But please don't race out and file on the basis of a collection call.

Anonymous · ‎04-16-2018

@CH-7-Mission-Accomplished wrote:
Don't file too quickly! Do you know when your ex defaulted on the loan? This could very well be outside the statute of limitations to collect. You should know that for sure. Also in your case, I would not file before I was actually served with a lawsuit. If this is a collection account, you might be able to settle it for 10 cents on the dollar. If you file BK, they will get nothing.

You are the first person I've ever advised not to file, but what I'm saying is not yet. How much is the debt? Give us more information and we can try to help. But please don't race out and file on the basis of a collection call.

Agreed. Please provide:

Lender's name
Collection agency name
Balance owed
Date of last payment
Status of mobile home now (where is it? who has it?)

Additionally, do you pay alimony? Could your divorce agreement be modified to pay toward this loan vs. alimony?