Can / Should I avoid repo?

[Anonymous]

Hi All,

Two years ago, I was in a great spot with my job making great/steady income for the past several years. Unfortunately, about a year ago, my company was acquired and I was laid off. At that point, I had 3 car loans. My wifes vehicle, mine, plus a motorcycle. I was able to make payments comfortably on all three vehicles. When I was laid off, I immediately found a very good job with another company but I had to take a huge pay cut. No other company that I could find was hiring at the salary I previously was and the job I got offered was the best offer from the many interviews I went on. Till this day, this is true. I really enjoy where I am now after a year and the salary, though not comparable to what I was making before, is a lot better than many places. In fact, as mentioned, I haven't found another company that would pay me more.

With that said, two out of the three vehicles were leased. Both of those leased vehicles fell behind for three reasons:

1) My wife took a significant pay cut during that time and cannot find a better job (yet)

2) I took a significant paycut as well when I found a new job due to a layoff

3) Bills started to pile up

Both of the leased vehicles fell behind in payments and they were being actively searched for repo. I was able to dodge the repo for one vehicle. I was able to save some funds to catch up only with one vehicle. Unfortunately, I couldn't do it for the second vehicle and did a voluntary surrender because regardless, at the end of the lease, the vehicle was not going to be mine anyway. So I figured "why try to fight for a vehicle I won't be able to keep in the end anyway?".

I kept the other leased vehicle only because of course, we needed one. It is still a struggle but I am slowly catching up. Now, that third vehicle (the motorcycle) hasn't been paid in several months (About 8 months). Today they came looking for it to repo it. I was not here but they left a note to call back and I did. They wanted to make arrangements to pick it up but I told them I would call back and see when I would be able to. This vehicle, of course, is based on a standard loan (not lease) and it is something I will keep when paid off, unlike the leased vehicles. With that said, my intention is to catch up in the next month or two. What I mean by that is that within a month or two, I'll be all caught up with my leased vehicle and I will be able to start making the payments on my motorcycle again.

Instead of letting the bank repo my motorcycle, I want to hide it and avoid that until I can start making payments again in the next month or two. If I let them repo it, they'll auction it very low and I will be responsible for the remaining (difference). The difference may even be the same or more than what it's worth but at the same time I wouldn't have anything to show for it.

Can I stick to my plan of hiding it until I can get caught back up? What advice can you provide? Is it legal and safe what I want to do? Can the repo guy come with a police officer to my house to force me to let them take it if I have it parked in a garage?

Thanks in advance

[coterotie]

Check your state laws.  The answer may be that yes they can get the popo's to help them.   It is called a writ of replevin.

Now you may also be able to stall them.  Say that you are looking into filing bankruptcy and the motorcycle is your means of transport to work.  However, you will also be coming into money from your tax refund in January.  You can use that money to pay the bankruptcy attorney or catch up the motorcycle.  Ask them which they prefer. Then ask them for help in coming up with a plan to get your caught up.

You need to ask them for help.  Otherwise they will force your hand.  Ask the collector who the most sympathetic supervisor they have is.  Talk to them.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hi All,

Two years ago, I was in a great spot with my job making great/steady income for the past several years. Unfortunately, about a year ago, my company was acquired and I was laid off. At that point, I had 3 car loans. My wifes vehicle, mine, plus a motorcycle. I was able to make payments comfortably on all three vehicles. When I was laid off, I immediately found a very good job with another company but I had to take a huge pay cut. No other company that I could find was hiring at the salary I previously was and the job I got offered was the best offer from the many interviews I went on. Till this day, this is true. I really enjoy where I am now after a year and the salary, though not comparable to what I was making before, is a lot better than many places. In fact, as mentioned, I haven't found another company that would pay me more.

With that said, two out of the three vehicles were leased. Both of those leased vehicles fell behind for three reasons:

1) My wife took a significant pay cut during that time and cannot find a better job (yet)

2) I took a significant paycut as well when I found a new job due to a layoff

3) Bills started to pile up

Both of the leased vehicles fell behind in payments and they were being actively searched for repo. I was able to dodge the repo for one vehicle. I was able to save some funds to catch up only with one vehicle. Unfortunately, I couldn't do it for the second vehicle and did a voluntary surrender because regardless, at the end of the lease, the vehicle was not going to be mine anyway. So I figured "why try to fight for a vehicle I won't be able to keep in the end anyway?".

I kept the other leased vehicle only because of course, we needed one. It is still a struggle but I am slowly catching up. Now, that third vehicle (the motorcycle) hasn't been paid in several months (About 8 months). Today they came looking for it to repo it. I was not here but they left a note to call back and I did. They wanted to make arrangements to pick it up but I told them I would call back and see when I would be able to. This vehicle, of course, is based on a standard loan (not lease) and it is something I will keep when paid off, unlike the leased vehicles. With that said, my intention is to catch up in the next month or two. What I mean by that is that within a month or two, I'll be all caught up with my leased vehicle and I will be able to start making the payments on my motorcycle again.

Instead of letting the bank repo my motorcycle, I want to hide it and avoid that until I can start making payments again in the next month or two. If I let them repo it, they'll auction it very low and I will be responsible for the remaining (difference). The difference may even be the same or more than what it's worth but at the same time I wouldn't have anything to show for it.

Can I stick to my plan of hiding it until I can get caught back up? What advice can you provide? Is it legal and safe what I want to do? Can the repo guy come with a police officer to my house to force me to let them take it if I have it parked in a garage?

Thanks in advance

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[Anonymous]

You need to contact your finance company and if there is anything at all you can do to avoid the repossession.  Do not try to hide the vehicle as that will end up causing you more problems than what you have.  Besides what coterotie said about replevin, it's also a crime in some states to hide the vehicle.

[Anonymous]

Thank you both for taking the time to read my lengthy post. I appreciate your responses. I will be talking with my lender to see what options they can offer. I'll post back here whatever they say.

[Anonymous]

I wanted to add that I found this based on the suggestions you both gave, so I appreciate it: http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0000-0099/...

I was not aware of this.

[Dustink]

It is likely cheaper to buy another motorcycle than to get things sorted out on the other one. Your credit is already toast, another repo won't do too much more damage.

[dabrian]

Let them both go then pay cash for a cheap reliable car.

[Anonymous]

The problem with letting them both go in a repo is that I am still going to get hammered with paying the difference and not have anything to show for it. I'll also get hit by the IRS for taxes on the loss the bank takes as income on my end. Trying to catch up with payments and getting back on my feet when I can probably will cost me just as much as a repo considering that in a repo, I'll still owe the difference and get hit with taxes by the IRS plus use the money I save to get a car OR if I keep it and try to work it out when I can afford to by dodging repo.

I think either option is going to be expensive with the difference that one will allow me to keep the bike and show something for it while the other won't. My concern is how to approach this without repo coming with police officers forcing me to give it up. I thought that with replevin, the lender would have to go to court first and get that from a judge. I didn't think that repo could bring a police officer to my house and have the officer force me to give it up.

The other issue that concerns me is that I have two loans with this motorcycle. One is through GE and the other through Capital One. So if it get's repo'd, the repo may only be fulfilling one lender. It's like a tug of war.

[sccredit]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The problem with letting them both go in a repo is that I am still going to get hammered with paying the difference and not have anything to show for it. I'll also get hit by the IRS for taxes on the loss the bank takes as income on my end. Trying to catch up with payments and getting back on my feet when I can probably will cost me just as much as a repo considering that in a repo, I'll still owe the difference and get hit with taxes by the IRS plus use the money I save to get a car OR if I keep it and try to work it out when I can afford to by dodging repo.

I think either option is going to be expensive with the difference that one will allow me to keep the bike and show something for it while the other won't. My concern is how to approach this without repo coming with police officers forcing me to give it up. I thought that with replevin, the lender would have to go to court first and get that from a judge. I didn't think that repo could bring a police officer to my house and have the officer force me to give it up.

The other issue that concerns me is that I have two loans with this motorcycle. One is through GE and the other through Capital One. So if it get's repo'd, the repo may only be fulfilling one lender. It's like a tug of war.

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How did you obtain two loans?  Which lender is on title?

[Anonymous]

One loan was actually via the vendor's credit card. So they use Capital One. The other was through a bank. So the bank approved X amount and then the rest was put through their own Credit line (Yamaha)