Stop Liens ASAP in Raleigh, NC!
Dealing with liens? Here’s what you need to know and how you can stop them fast!
File a Motion Before Your Bankruptcy is Final!
To stop a lien, you have to file a motion before your bankruptcy is final and discharged, or the lien will stick around. If your bankruptcy is already final, you’ll need to re-open your case, which means extra court costs and attorney fees. If you’re dealing with real estate liens, you might also need a property appraisal.
Bank Account and Wage Garnishments:
Filing for bankruptcy can stop wage garnishments and bank account seizures. But if you wait too long and money is already taken from your paycheck, getting it back can be tough.
Stopping Judicial Liens in Chapter 7:
You can stop a judicial lien (when a creditor sues you and attaches a lien to your home) with Chapter 7 bankruptcy. However, it doesn’t work with consensual liens (like mortgages or car loans) unless they’re preferential transfers. That means if a lien was placed on your property within 90 days of filing for bankruptcy, it could be stopped.
Valuing Your Property:
When filing for bankruptcy, you can value your property at appraised, tax, PVA (property value assessment), or liquidation value (what it would sell for at auction). For personal property, like cars, you can redeem it by paying the lien holder the auction value. However, this only works for personal property, not homes.
Sued and Have Judicial Liens?
If you’ve been sued, you might have judicial liens on your real property. These can be stopped in bankruptcy, but only if you tell us about them! If you don’t tell us, those liens will stay on your property even after bankruptcy. To avoid this, have a title check done through a title company or at your county courthouse to see if there are any liens on your property.
Avoid Household Goods Liens:
Sometimes, finance companies place liens on your furniture and personal items. These are called non-purchase money security interests (NPMSI). You can avoid these liens in bankruptcy if you haven’t taken out a loan within 90 days of filing. Household goods liens are often avoided, but you have to tell us for us to stop them! Even if you don’t file a motion, most companies won’t go through the trouble of repossessing household goods—they usually give up.
Consensual Liens (Like Mortgages and Car Loans):
Bankruptcy doesn’t normally remove consensual liens (like mortgages or car loans) unless you’re willing to give up the property. However, in Chapter 13, you may be able to strip away a second mortgage if there’s no equity in the home for the second mortgage to attach to.
Watch Out for Scare Tactics!
Finance companies sometimes use household goods liens to scare people, but these types of liens were made illegal by the government over 20 years ago. Most companies won’t bother repossessing your furniture if they have to pay attorney fees and court costs.
Need help stopping a lien? Reach out to us today, and let’s tackle this together!
Dealing with liens can be tricky, but you have options to stop them. Here’s how:
File a Motion Before Your Bankruptcy is Final
To stop a lien, you must file a motion before your bankruptcy is final and discharged. If you wait until after your bankruptcy is discharged, the lien might stick, and you’ll have extra court costs and attorney fees to re-open the case. If it’s a real estate lien, you might also need a property appraisal.
Stopping Garnishments
Bankruptcy can stop wage and bank account garnishments, but if money has already been taken from your paycheck, it might be hard to get it back. So act fast!
Judicial Liens
In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can stop a judicial lien (when a creditor sues you and attaches a lien to your home). However, this doesn’t usually apply to consensual liens, like mortgages or car loans, unless the lien was placed within 90 days of filing for bankruptcy.
Property Valuation
When filing for bankruptcy, your property can be valued at appraised, tax, PVA, or liquidation value (what it would sell for at auction). For personal property like cars, you can redeem it by paying the lien holder the auction value, clearing the lien. This works for personal items, but not for real estate.
Judicial Liens on Real Property
If you’ve been sued and there are judicial liens on your property, we can help you get rid of them through bankruptcy, but only if you tell us about them! You can check for these liens at the courthouse or by getting a title check. Make sure you know if there are any liens on your home before filing for bankruptcy.
Consensual Liens
Bankruptcy doesn’t usually remove consensual liens (like mortgages and car loans) unless you’re willing to give up the property. However, in Chapter 13, you can strip away a second mortgage if there’s no equity for it to attach to.
Household Goods Liens
Sometimes finance companies place liens on your furniture and household goods. This is called a non-purchase money security interest (NPMSI). These liens can often be avoided in bankruptcy, but you need to tell us about them. Most companies won’t repossess household items because of the costs involved, but it’s important to know your rights.
Take Action!
The key to stopping liens is acting quickly and giving us all the information. Whether it’s a car loan, mortgage, or furniture lien, we can help you navigate the process and avoid unnecessary costs.
Have more questions? Let us know, and we’ll guide you through stopping those liens!
