Learn More About Bankruptcy From Harness Law Office LLC

Yes, all property that you own must be included in your bankruptcy petition. However, if you are current on your house payments and have less than $15,000 equity in your home, you may be allowed to keep your home after filing for bankruptcy provided you continue making your regular monthly payments.

Yes. All property must be included in your bankruptcy petition. If you are current with your payments and have less than $3,000 equity in your vehicle you may be allowed to keep it after filing for bankruptcy provided you continue making regular monthly payments. You may also be required to sign a "reaffirmation agreement" with your lender.

Bankruptcy stays on your credit history for 10 years. There are some instances where you will be able to secure credit once you receive your decree of discharge.

Your bankruptcy hearing will be scheduled approximately 30 days from the date you file your bankruptcy with the court. Your decree of discharge is usually issued 60 days after your hearing. Your case will be closed about two weeks after that. In all, it may take about four months to close your case.

The trustee assigned to your case will ask you several questions about the answers you listed in your bankruptcy petition. A simple Chapter 7 bankruptcy will usually take about 10 minutes.

Yes, it is possible.

Yes, all debts must be listed. As long as you do not pay any friends or relatives for a period of time prior to your bankruptcy and you list them as a creditor, you may be able to voluntarily repay them after your bankruptcy.

Debts owed to the government such as back taxes or student loans are usually not dischargeable in bankruptcy.

Any secured creditor may elect to take your furniture. This depends on the creditor, the length of time you have paid on the furniture, and its present value.

Only people or creditors that are listed on your petition are notified by the court when you file bankruptcy. It is public information on file with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court and may be published in some legal newspapers.

Bankruptcy is a federal matter. We handle the majority of our bankruptcy cases at the Thomas Eagleton Building in downtown St. Louis; the Federal Courthouse in Cape Girardeau; or the Wentzville Justice Center.

There is no set maximum or minimum. Please note that bankruptcy will stay on your credit rating for 10 years and you can only file for bankruptcy every 8 years.

Yes, you can.

If your car is worth less than $3,000 or you have less than $3,000 equity in the car, you can keep it in bankruptcy. If you have more than $3,000 equity or the car is worth more than $3,000, the trustee may take your car to help pay back creditors. You may have the option of purchasing your car back from the Bankruptcy Court. Factors in establishing your car's worth include age, mileage, condition, and appearance.