You are allowed up to $60,000 of equity in your primary residence if you file for bankruptcy. The equity increases to $90,000 if you are over the age of 60. In this current real estate market, most people have no equity issues and keep their homes after filing bankruptcy.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/23/2011

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Generally speaking, filing for bankruptcy does not mean you automatically give up the equity in your home. However, only a certain amount of equity is exempted from the bankruptcy estate. The amount of equity that is exempted varies by state. You should consult with a bankruptcy attorney regarding your options because the amount of equity in the home may be substantially affected if you surrender the property back to the bank.

Answer Applies to: Oregon
Replied: 10/21/2011

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In order to keep your house after chapter 7 bankruptcy you must pay your mortgage on a current basis. You can contact your lender about an arrangement to catch up on back payments.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/21/2011

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This would depend on how much equity you have in your home. If your equity does not exceed the amount that can be exempted then you keep all of it. If your equity exceeds the amount that is allowed then you could lose a portion of it. This type of issue is not decided on a case by case basis. Your value either fits or they do not. Discuss this with an attorney so you can protect your precious assets.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/21/2011

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If you have equity do not file the bankruptcy on your own. See a lawyer first. What you get to keep depends on a lot of factors and I have no facts here to work with.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/20/2011

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You may have equity in your home and keep it after a bankruptcy discharge. There is a certain amount of exemptions available for equity in a home. If you are an individual you may have up to $21,625 for a real property exemption. If you are filing joint with a spouse and the house is owned jointly you may have up to $43,250 for a real property exemption. If you have more equity than you have available in exemptions than the trustee can attempt to sell your home to liquidate the asset in order to pay creditors.

Answer Applies to: Michigan
Replied: 10/20/2011

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If you are behind on your mortgage, the mortgage company has the right to foreclose on your house. If you post it for sale, you would have to pay off the mortgage company and whatever was left would be your equity and it would be all yours.

Answer Applies to: Texas
Replied: 10/20/2011

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Depends on how much equity you have. If you file a Chapter 7 you are allowed to keep $60,000 in home equity, $90,000 if you are elderly or disabled. But if you are behind in your mortgage payments the lender will foreclose and you will lose your equity.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/20/2011

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There is homestead exemption of $60,000 ($90,000 if you are over 60 or disabled). This amount cannot be taken by the bankruptcy trustee. However, you must still make your mortgage payments or the lender can foreclose because you waived your homestead exemption as to your lender when you signed the deed of trust (it's a standard provision in almost all loans).

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/20/2011

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It depends on how much equity there is in your home. Each individual is allowed a $10,000.00 exemption of equity. If there is more equity than that, the Trustee may want to liquidate your home and use the unexempt proceeds to pay your creditors. I strongly suggest consulting with an attorney.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 10/20/2011

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You exempt and keep the equity in your home up to $360,000.00 in Minnesota, however generally speaking, you must continue to make your mortgage payments if you want to keep your home.

Answer Applies to: Minnesota
Replied: 10/19/2011

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Whether you can keep equity in bankruptcy depends on the applicable "exemptions" available to you when and where you file.

Answer Applies to: Indiana
Replied: 10/19/2011

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You may only keep a very limited equity in real estate. If you have too much, you lose the house. Bankruptcy is NEVER a do it yourself project. Sit down with a lawyer to determine if and how you can keep the home.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 10/19/2011

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The answer to your question depends upon how much equity you have in your home. There is a $10,000.00 homestead exemption for a single person and there is a $20,000.00 homestead exemption for a married person pursuant to the Georgia exemptions. To take the Georgia exemptions, you must have been a resident of Georgia for at least 2 years. If you have not been a resident of Georgia for 2 years, then you may be able to take the exemptions from another state or the federal exemptions which could be more generous than the Georgia exemptions. In looking at this particular issue, you also need to take into consideration the cost of selling your home which is usually about 10% of its value. If all of your equity is exempt after factoring in the cost of sale, then you can keep all of the equity in your home if you file for Chapter 7. If you are behind on your mortgage payments, your mortgage company could still foreclose your home. They could either wait for your Chapter 7 case to be discharged and closed and then file for foreclosure or the lender could ask the Bankruptcy Court to lift the automatic stay so that foreclosure proceedings could begin before the Chapter 7 case is concluded. As always, you should consult an experienced Bankruptcy attorney prior to making an decisions with respect to filing for Bankruptcy.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 10/19/2011

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Your question is unclear. Do you actually have any equity on your home? If you do, you can get it by selling the house and paying off the mortgage. The remaining money is your equity.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 10/19/2011

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If you are keeping the home, you must make the payments. A bankruptcy does not allow you to keep real estate that you don't pay for. If you have equity it is exempt up to the statutory limits. Depending on your situation you can exempt $75,000, $100,000 or $175,000. Go and see a knowledgeable local bankruptcy attorney for information on your specific situation.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/19/2011

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The bankruptcy code allows for certain property to be deemed exempt from the reach of creditors, meaning you do not have to surrender the property in order to make payments on your debt. Massachusetts is particularly generous, allowing your to protect up to $500,000 equity in your home. In order to maintain your ownership interest in the property, you will need to sign a reaffirmation agreement stating you agree to keep paying the mortgage even after your bankruptcy discharge has been entered. Lenders will not allow you to sign such an agreement until your account is current. There are two options for "buying time" to catch up on those mortgage payments: 1) request the court delay entering your discharge order until you can get current on your mortgage or 2) file your bankruptcy petition under Chapter 13 which gives you between three and five years to pay off the arrears on your mortgage. If you file under Chapter 13, however, you will likely be required to make at least partial payments on your other debts as well. Given the complexity of the matter, you should definitely consult a bankruptcy attorney who can help you figure out what option is best for you.

Answer Applies to: Massachusetts
Replied: 10/19/2011

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In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy all of your property becomes property of the estate which is administered by the Trustee assigned to your case. However, you are entitled to the legal exemptions, including the homestead exemption - which is $15,000.00 in Illinois, and $30,000.00 if the home is owned jointly with your wife. Any equity in the home beyond the homestead exemption belongs to the estate and the Trustee can decide what to do with it.

Answer Applies to: Illinois
Replied: 10/19/2011

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Your homestead is exempt from the bankruptcy. If the equity is less than $22k you can still use the Federal Exemptions with the Wildcard Exemption. Most people of modest means keep everything in a chapter 7 with federal exemptions. If the equity is more than the $22K federal limit, you can use Minnesota exemptions. the Homestead is exempt up to $360k equity,but there is no wild card.

Answer Applies to: Minnesota
Replied: 10/19/2011

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This depends on the amount of equity and what your state exemption statutes say.

Answer Applies to: Washington
Replied: 10/19/2011

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It depends on how much equity and if you have an exemption available to protect the equity and whatever other assets you have which may need to be protected.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 10/19/2011

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An attorney would need to know the value of your house, the balance of all mortgage liens, number of people on the title and if you are married and house is titled jointly, how the deed is titled and whether you have any joint debt with your spouse.

Answer Applies to: Virginia
Replied: 10/19/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.