Expert: Mark J. Markus- California Bankruptcy Attorney - 2/11/2009

Question
I filed BK7 and was discharged Aug 2008.  I live in Las Vegas NV.  I have 2 loans attached to my home.  These loans were included in our BK7 and did not reaffirm.  I am current with my mortgage and the other 2 loans.  I found out that if your 1st loan is higher than what the house is worth, the 2nd or 3rd loans are considered unsecured.  Is this true?  If so, can I reopen my case?  I understand the fee involved with my attorney.  I plan to keep my house.  I was just wondering if I can reopen my case and include the 2nd and 3rd loans.  FYI... my 1st and 2nd are with the same mortgage company.  Would this have an impact on my 1st mortgage if I reopen the case and go thru with it?  Thanks so much for your help.  My attorney seem to not know about it because if he did, he should have included my 2nd and 3rd loans onto my Schedule.  Thanks!

Answer
I'll do my best to answer all your questions.  First of all, if you failed to list all your debts, that is grounds for denial of your discharge and other sanctions, so I wouldn't rock the boat at this time in any event.   Second, I believe what you're asking about is the ability to strip the liens for the wholly undersecured debts.  This can be done on a principal residence only in a Chapter 13 case.   You may be able to file a Ch. 13 now, but you'd need to check with an attorney in your area because different courts handle that differently.