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Bankruptcy Law/Chap. 7 and mortgage

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Expert: - 5/15/2011


Question
My husband and I will file for Chap. 7 in June 2011. We have a mortgage and little if any equity in our home so we could use the Homestead exemption if needed. We have been making our payments late, however before 90 days so we haven't triggered NOD. We want to continue to make our mortgage payments and live in our home, but we do not want to reaffirm in case at some later time we cannot make our payments. Our mortgage is with Wells Fargo. Can the bank foreclose on us once we file if we do not reaffirm, even if we are not 90 past due on our payments? If the bank does not report payments received after the bankruptcy to the credit bureaus, can we report the payments made on our mortgage to the credit bureaus ourselves?

Answer
The bank can seek to foreclose after bankruptcy if you do not reaffirm and you are in default under your Note.  I don't know what 90 day period you're referring to...the Note controls the terms of payment.  Even if you reaffirm, if you become delinquent on the Note they can commence foreclosure then.

No, you cannot report current payments to credit bureaus, to the best of my knowledge, but I am not a credit reporting expert.

Mark J. Markus, Attorney at Law
Handling exclusively bankruptcy law cases in California since 1991.
http://www.bklaw.com/  

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Mark J. Markus- California Bankruptcy Attorney

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Mark J. Markus is a Los Angeles bankruptcy attorney who has practiced exclusively bankruptcy law in California since 1991 and is rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau and is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He represents debtors, creditors, and Trustees in Chapter 7, Chapter 11, and Chapter 13 of the bankruptcy code throughout California.

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Visit our California bankruptcy webpage at http://www.bklaw.com for more information on bankruptcy in general and Mark J. Markus in particular. Many questions are answered on the web page (hint, hint).
The Markus webpage also contains more information on

  • Which Chapter to File,
  • business bankruptcy,
  • chapter 7 bankruptcy,
  • chapter 11 bankruptcy,
  • chapter 13 bankruptcy,
  • Do You Need a Lawyer to File Bankruptcy?
  • Frequently Asked Bankruptcy Questions

    Also visit our Los Angeles bankruptcy blog for interesting articles and much more.



    Organizations
    Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association (CDCBAA) Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) Commercial Law & Bankruptcy Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association Financial Lawyers Conference (FLC) National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA) Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum (LABF) American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) San Fernando Valley Bar Association (SFVBA)

    Publications
    Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association Newsletter September 2007 (Vol. 1, Issue 2)

    Education/Credentials
    J.D., University of Arizona 1990. B.A. Economics, California State University, Northridge 1986. For more details please click here

    Awards and Honors
    AV Rated by Martindale-Hubbell (http://www.martindale.com) A+ Rated by Better Business Bureau

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