Depending on your state of residence, an income level of less than $50,000 may permit you to file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy case.
(The amount of income that is permissible for a chapter 7 varies from state to state — in most states, your income level would be below the threshold required for a chapter 7 — check you state\’s amount).
Keeping your house depends on several factors.
If there is no equity in the home (meaning that you owe at least as much as what it is worth), and if you are current on your payments, you should be able to retain the home so long as you continue to make payments to the mortgage holder.
If the value of the home is more than what it is worth, but the difference in the amount is less than your state\’s exemption for your residence, the same answer applies.
However, if the value of the house, less the allowed exemption for the house, exceeds what is owed (for example, if the value of the house is $200,000 and the exemption amount for your specific state is $20,000, and you owe $100,000 on the home, there would be equity in the home totaling $80,000), the trustee may desire to sell the house and pay your creditors from the proceeds of the sale.
For complete information on the processes and forms for filing a personal Bankruptcy, see Standard Legal’s Bankruptcy legal forms software page.