Even when the contentions against a debtor-spouse sound in fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, or intentional tort, the claims of the debtor’s spouse survive a Chapter 7 discharge. Without the necessity of a timely adversary proceeding So held the 9th Cir. BAP in Cohen Building on the unpublished Adam BAP case, the BAP found that […] The post Interspousal claims defy the Chapter 7 discharge appeared first on Bankruptcy Mastery.

Tax code changes effective in 2018 inflicted a crippling blow to consumers who must sue to enforce their rights.  And few have yet noticed. The tax deduction for miscellaneous itemized deductions under IRC Section 212 is gone. So now, consumers who prevail under statutes that award attorneys fees to the successful plaintiff are denied a […] The post Sneak Attack On Consumer Rights appeared first on Bankruptcy Mastery.

Are Certificates Of Deposit Exempt In Arizona Bankruptcy? The market has been volatile since the pandemic, and people are looking for safe and secure ways to invest their money without the fear of losing their principal. A certificate of deposit, or CD, is a guaranteed form of investment offered by most banks and credit unions. Guaranteed returns are a precious asset when other forms of investment may end up losing money. Interest rates are high, making it more expensive to invest in some areas but increases the returns on a CD. That is making C Ds a more popular form of investment when the economy creates uncertainty. But C Ds are far from a get-rich-quick scheme, and an investor could experience financial struggles while waiting for their account to mature. Funds from a CD are not easily accessible before maturation, and the investor can be subject to fees and penalties if they withdraw from their CD to keep creditors at bay. That doesn’t mean that they are safe from being taken by the trustee if the investor declares chapter 7 bankruptcy. Read on to learn more about what happens to a CD in chapter 7 bankruptcy in Arizona. If you have additional questions or concerns, or would like to discuss your situation with an experienced Arizona bankruptcy professional, call 480-470-1504 for your free consultation with My AZ Lawyers.  Can a Certificate of Deposit Be Protected in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy? When a debtor declares chapter 7 bankruptcy, they must protect all of their assets using bankruptcy exemptions. Any bankruptcy asset without an applicable exemption could be taken by the trustee to pay off debts. Unfortunately, Arizona does not have a bankruptcy exemption specifically designed to protect certificate of deposit accounts. That leaves a potential bankruptcy debtor with funds in a CD very few options.  Some states offer a wildcard exemption, or an exemption that can be used on any asset of the debtor’s choosing. Arizona does not have a wildcard exemption available for bankruptcy debtors. The federal bankruptcy exemptions have a wildcard exemption, but debtors in Arizona aren’t given the option of using federal exemptions instead of state exemptions. There is a bank account exemption for Arizona bankruptcy debtors, but as it can only be applied to one bank account, most debtors use it for their checking account. It is a nominal exemption and is insufficient to protect significant CD investment funds. It can also be more inconvenient to surrender a checking account and all of the expenses that are paid through that debit card. That’s why, if possible, the debtor should spend the contents of their CD before filing for bankruptcy in the state of Arizona.  If a CD has already matured, a person considering bankruptcy can withdraw from the account to spend it without fees and penalties. If bankruptcy is on the horizon, the funds should be spent on reasonable purchases, like household items, medical treatments, car repairs, etc., rather than designer goods, vacations, and other luxury goods and services. The debtor could even use the funds from a CD to pay for bankruptcy filing fees and attorney’s fees. The debtor should avoid using these funds to pay off debts to insiders in favor of other creditors- for example, repaying an informal loan to your parents is considered a preferential payment that can cause issues in a chapter 7 bankruptcy case. The debtor should also avoid paying off expenses that will be cleared by a chapter 7 bankruptcy filing, such as credit card bills. For more information about reasonable spending before a chapter 7 bankruptcy filing in Arizona, call 480-470-1504 to schedule your free consultation with our firm.  Different Types Of Bankruptcy Exemptions In Arizona Homestead exemption: This is the exemption meant to protect a debtor’s residence, and if applicable, the land on which it is situated. The debtor should live in the home full-time if they wish to protect it with the homestead exemption. It also applies to condominiums, co-ops, and mobile homes. The value of this exemption has been on the rise in recent years due to the sharp increase in home prices in Arizona.  Motor vehicle exemption: This exemption is meant to protect the vehicle the debtor uses to get to work, run errands, etc. A married couple can either use the exemption on two separate vehicles or combine the amount to use on one shared vehicle. If the debtor is physically disabled, or has a dependent who is physically disabled, this exemption increases to represent any special equipment that may be installed.  Household goods and furnishings: This exemption covers a variety of items and possessions around the house, like appliances, furniture, and electronic devices. There is a separate exemption that can be used on a computer if the debtor is close to the edge for this exemption.  Food, fuel, and provisions: With the cost of gas and groceries these days, you might as well start counting these basic necessities as assets. Arizona’s bankruptcy exemptions don’t have a set value for this category, and simply protect six months’ worth, whatever that may be for a household.  Firearms: The firearm exemption looks to aggregate value, meaning that the debtor can protect more than one weapon using this exemption if the total value falls within the exemption.  Household pets: While there used to be a dollar amount for this exemption, Arizona allows bankruptcy debtors to protect all of their household pets from seizure by the trustee.  Life insurance policy: Some or all of the proceeds of a life insurance policy can be protected in bankruptcy. The money received should come from a surviving spouse or child policy. There are limitations as to how much this exemption can protect.  Child support and alimony: If the court orders one party to pay their ex child support and/or spousal support, those payments are exempt in a chapter 7 bankruptcy case in Arizona. The parent receiving payments can file for bankruptcy knowing that these payments will not stop or be taken away by the bankruptcy trustee.  Insurance benefits: Insurance benefits from exempt property are also exempt in bankruptcy. For example, if a housefire destroyed furniture and appliances that would’ve been protected by the household goods and furnishings exemption, these proceeds can also be exempt in chapter 7 bankruptcy.  Retirement savings: 401(k)s, IR As, and other ERISA-qualified retirement savings are safe in bankruptcy. However, contributions made in the 120 days prior to filing may not be covered under the exemption.  Learn More About Your Bankruptcy Options With Our Experienced Professionals If you are considering declaring bankruptcy, there should be many items on your list of issues to consider, including whether your investments such as C Ds will be exempt. No two cases are exactly the same, so if you’re hung up on your decision on if you should file, you may want to discuss your situation with a skilled bankruptcy lawyer. Our knowledgeable bankruptcy team offers free consultations by phone for your convenience, free of charge. Get the bankruptcy process rolling and have all of your questions answered by a seasoned professional. We also offer flexible payment options for eligible clients starting as low as zero dollars down. To get started today, contact us or call at 480-470-1504 to schedule your free consultation with My AZ Lawyers.  MY AZ LAWYERS Email: [email protected] Website: www.myazlawyers.com Mesa Location 1731 West Baseline Rd., Suite #100 Mesa, AZ 85202 Office: 480-448-9800 Phoenix Location 343 West Roosevelt, Suite #100 Phoenix, AZ 85003 Office: 602-609-7000 Glendale Location 20325 N 51st Avenue Suite #134, Building 5 Glendale, AZ 85308 Office: 602-509-0955 Tucson Location 2 East Congress St., Suite #900-6A Tucson, AZ 85701 Office: 520-441-1450 Avondale Location 12725 W. Indian School Rd., Ste E, #101 Avondale, AZ 85392 Office: 623-469-6603 The post Are Certificates Of Deposit Exempt In Arizona Bankruptcy? appeared first on My AZ Lawyers.

Are Certificates Of Deposit Exempt In Arizona Bankruptcy? The market has been volatile since the pandemic, and people are looking for safe and secure ways to invest their money without the fear of losing their principal. A certificate of deposit, or CD, is a guaranteed form of investment offered by most banks and credit unions. Guaranteed returns are a precious asset when other forms of investment may end up losing money. Interest rates are high, making it more expensive to invest in some areas but increases the returns on a CD. That is making C Ds a more popular form of investment when the economy creates uncertainty. But C Ds are far from a get-rich-quick scheme, and an investor could experience financial struggles while waiting for their account to mature. Funds from a CD are not easily accessible before maturation, and the investor can be subject to fees and penalties if they withdraw from their CD to keep creditors at bay. That doesn’t mean that they are safe from being taken by the trustee if the investor declares chapter 7 bankruptcy. Read on to learn more about what happens to a CD in chapter 7 bankruptcy in Arizona. If you have additional questions or concerns, or would like to discuss your situation with an experienced Arizona bankruptcy professional, call 480-470-1504 for your free consultation with My AZ Lawyers.  Can a Certificate of Deposit Be Protected in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy? When a debtor declares chapter 7 bankruptcy, they must protect all of their assets using bankruptcy exemptions. Any bankruptcy asset without an applicable exemption could be taken by the trustee to pay off debts. Unfortunately, Arizona does not have a bankruptcy exemption specifically designed to protect certificate of deposit accounts. That leaves a potential bankruptcy debtor with funds in a CD very few options.  Some states offer a wildcard exemption, or an exemption that can be used on any asset of the debtor’s choosing. Arizona does not have a wildcard exemption available for bankruptcy debtors. The federal bankruptcy exemptions have a wildcard exemption, but debtors in Arizona aren’t given the option of using federal exemptions instead of state exemptions. There is a bank account exemption for Arizona bankruptcy debtors, but as it can only be applied to one bank account, most debtors use it for their checking account. It is a nominal exemption and is insufficient to protect significant CD investment funds. It can also be more inconvenient to surrender a checking account and all of the expenses that are paid through that debit card. That’s why, if possible, the debtor should spend the contents of their CD before filing for bankruptcy in the state of Arizona.  If a CD has already matured, a person considering bankruptcy can withdraw from the account to spend it without fees and penalties. If bankruptcy is on the horizon, the funds should be spent on reasonable purchases, like household items, medical treatments, car repairs, etc., rather than designer goods, vacations, and other luxury goods and services. The debtor could even use the funds from a CD to pay for bankruptcy filing fees and attorney’s fees. The debtor should avoid using these funds to pay off debts to insiders in favor of other creditors- for example, repaying an informal loan to your parents is considered a preferential payment that can cause issues in a chapter 7 bankruptcy case. The debtor should also avoid paying off expenses that will be cleared by a chapter 7 bankruptcy filing, such as credit card bills. For more information about reasonable spending before a chapter 7 bankruptcy filing in Arizona, call 480-470-1504 to schedule your free consultation with our firm.  Different Types Of Bankruptcy Exemptions In Arizona Homestead exemption: This is the exemption meant to protect a debtor’s residence, and if applicable, the land on which it is situated. The debtor should live in the home full-time if they wish to protect it with the homestead exemption. It also applies to condominiums, co-ops, and mobile homes. The value of this exemption has been on the rise in recent years due to the sharp increase in home prices in Arizona.  Motor vehicle exemption: This exemption is meant to protect the vehicle the debtor uses to get to work, run errands, etc. A married couple can either use the exemption on two separate vehicles or combine the amount to use on one shared vehicle. If the debtor is physically disabled, or has a dependent who is physically disabled, this exemption increases to represent any special equipment that may be installed.  Household goods and furnishings: This exemption covers a variety of items and possessions around the house, like appliances, furniture, and electronic devices. There is a separate exemption that can be used on a computer if the debtor is close to the edge for this exemption.  Food, fuel, and provisions: With the cost of gas and groceries these days, you might as well start counting these basic necessities as assets. Arizona’s bankruptcy exemptions don’t have a set value for this category, and simply protect six months’ worth, whatever that may be for a household.  Firearms: The firearm exemption looks to aggregate value, meaning that the debtor can protect more than one weapon using this exemption if the total value falls within the exemption.  Household pets: While there used to be a dollar amount for this exemption, Arizona allows bankruptcy debtors to protect all of their household pets from seizure by the trustee.  Life insurance policy: Some or all of the proceeds of a life insurance policy can be protected in bankruptcy. The money received should come from a surviving spouse or child policy. There are limitations as to how much this exemption can protect.  Child support and alimony: If the court orders one party to pay their ex child support and/or spousal support, those payments are exempt in a chapter 7 bankruptcy case in Arizona. The parent receiving payments can file for bankruptcy knowing that these payments will not stop or be taken away by the bankruptcy trustee.  Insurance benefits: Insurance benefits from exempt property are also exempt in bankruptcy. For example, if a housefire destroyed furniture and appliances that would’ve been protected by the household goods and furnishings exemption, these proceeds can also be exempt in chapter 7 bankruptcy.  Retirement savings: 401(k)s, IR As, and other ERISA-qualified retirement savings are safe in bankruptcy. However, contributions made in the 120 days prior to filing may not be covered under the exemption.  Learn More About Your Bankruptcy Options With Our Experienced Professionals If you are considering declaring bankruptcy, there should be many items on your list of issues to consider, including whether your investments such as C Ds will be exempt. No two cases are exactly the same, so if you’re hung up on your decision on if you should file, you may want to discuss your situation with a skilled bankruptcy lawyer. Our knowledgeable bankruptcy team offers free consultations by phone for your convenience, free of charge. Get the bankruptcy process rolling and have all of your questions answered by a seasoned professional. We also offer flexible payment options for eligible clients starting as low as zero dollars down. To get started today, contact us or call at 480-470-1504 to schedule your free consultation with My AZ Lawyers.  MY AZ LAWYERS Email: [email protected] Website: www.myazlawyers.com Mesa Location 1731 West Baseline Rd., Suite #100 Mesa, AZ 85202 Office: 480-448-9800 Phoenix Location 343 West Roosevelt, Suite #100 Phoenix, AZ 85003 Office: 602-609-7000 Glendale Location 20325 N 51st Avenue Suite #134, Building 5 Glendale, AZ 85308 Office: 602-509-0955 Tucson Location 2 East Congress St., Suite #900-6A Tucson, AZ 85701 Office: 520-441-1450 Avondale Location 12725 W. Indian School Rd., Ste E, #101 Avondale, AZ 85392 Office: 623-469-6603 The post Are Certificates Of Deposit Exempt In Arizona Bankruptcy? appeared first on My AZ Lawyers.

“You mean to tell me you don’t have any underwear!” When I was much younger, I practiced bankruptcy law in Baltimore City. Judge Kiser, the bankruptcy judge, made people inventory their underwear.  Today, the bankruptcy court in Alexandria Virginia does NOT do that. The court here is NOT interested in your underwear or any of your clothes. But there are lines of the official bankruptcy papers for your clothes and furniture; we need to fill in those lines.When you file bankruptcy, Virginia law allows you to keep up to $1000.00 worth of clothing. Somebody would have to work really hard to sell your clothes for more than a thousand.  (Take a look at this article. Haley Marie, worked four apps for a year to sell 171 items. She made $1485. The bankruptcy trustee does not want to spend a year selling your stuff.) So, you can safely assume yours are not worth a thousand dollars to the bankruptcy court.What About My Furniture?Most used furniture has no value. Used furniture costs money to get rid of.A few years ago, my wife and I decided to downsize our house in Falls Church and move to a smaller home. We needed smaller–and newer–furniture. We quickly found out used furniture costs money to get rid of. My wife found a service that came to our house with three trucks. The first truck took some very expensive pieces out to a dealer in the Shenandoah Valley. The second truck took about half of our stuff to Goodwill and the Salvation Army. The third truck took furniture we couldn’t donate to the dump.We broke even  We made enough money off the originally very expensive pieces to cover the cost of the trucks and dump fees to get rid of the rest.Virginia law allows you $5000 worth of furniture. If you want to spend two minutes valuing your furniture for your bankruptcy papers, look at this value chart. The value of used T Vs starts at $5.ConclusionWhen filling you your clothes and furniture for your bankruptcy papers, do NOT leave them blank. The trustee can see you have clothes.  But do not stress on the values. Just fill it out.The post Valuing Your Clothes and Furniture on Your Bankruptcy Papers appeared first on Robert Weed Bankruptcy Attorney.

“You mean to tell me you don’t have any underwear!” When I was much younger, I practiced bankruptcy law in Baltimore City. Judge Kiser, the bankruptcy judge, made people inventory their underwear.  Today, the bankruptcy court in Alexandria Virginia does NOT do that. The court here is NOT interested in your underwear or any of your clothes. But there are lines of the official bankruptcy papers for your clothes and furniture; we need to fill in those lines.When you file bankruptcy, Virginia law allows you to keep up to $1000.00 worth of clothing. Somebody would have to work really hard to sell your clothes for more than a thousand.  (Take a look at this article. Haley Marie, worked four apps for a year to sell 171 items. She made $1485. The bankruptcy trustee does not want to spend a year selling your stuff.) So, you can safely assume yours are not worth a thousand dollars to the bankruptcy court.What About My Furniture?Most used furniture has no value. Used furniture costs money to get rid of.A few years ago, my wife and I decided to downsize our house in Falls Church and move to a smaller home. We needed smaller–and newer–furniture. We quickly found out used furniture costs money to get rid of. My wife found a service that came to our house with three trucks. The first truck took some very expensive pieces out to a dealer in the Shenandoah Valley. The second truck took about half of our stuff to Goodwill and the Salvation Army. The third truck took furniture we couldn’t donate to the dump.We broke even  We made enough money off the originally very expensive pieces to cover the cost of the trucks and dump fees to get rid of the rest.Virginia law allows you $5000 worth of furniture. If you want to spend two minutes valuing your furniture for your bankruptcy papers, look at this value chart. The value of used T Vs starts at $5.ConclusionWhen filling you your clothes and furniture for your bankruptcy papers, do NOT leave them blank. The trustee can see you have clothes.  But do not stress on the values. Just fill it out.The post Valuing Your Clothes and Furniture on Your Bankruptcy Papers appeared first on Robert Weed Bankruptcy Attorney.

Law Review: Kilborn, Jason J., The 'Market Model' of Debt Counseling and Bankruptcy in the United States (March 1, 2024) Ed Boltz Wed, 04/24/2024 - 18:21 Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4752879Abstract: This paper is a chapter in a comparative volume examining social state, legal, and socio-political influences on debt counseling, in particular the challenges for the practice of counseling that arise from prevailing social and socio-political ideas about debt, help for those in debt, and over-indebtedness. It analyzes the US system of debt counseling as representative of the "market model" (in contrast with the "liability model" in Germany and Austria, the "grace model" in Sweden, and the "restrictions model" in England). This chapter reveals the unique trajectory of development of debt/credit counseling in the US, which arose not as a branch of social work or public support, but as a market-driven adjunct to small-loan lending, and it expanded as a market-driven response to a rise in personal bankruptcy. The “market model” thus quite aptly characterizes both credit counseling and personal bankruptcy in the US. Both represent efforts to keep the wheels of commerce turning in the face of market challenges, with a minimum of intervention, regulation, or funding by public government. The U.S. challenges arising in both credit counseling and personal bankruptcy also demonstrate the limitations and risks of leaving such complex and sensitive matters to private market resolution. Commentary: This short article,  which,  as shown by its secret  file name of "Schulden, Schuldenberatung und Sozialstaat", was written  for a German comparative law course,  provides a brief twinned history in the U.S. of not just bankruptcy but also the debt settlement/credit counseling.  And while I have been refreshing my high school German by using the Babbel app,  I doubt it is sufficient to read this book auf Deutsche,  so further summaries from that work of other countries' bankruptcy systems should not be anticipated until that has been translated. The reminders of how debt settlement and credit counseling are wholly captured by the financial services industry,  putting the interests of credit cards above those of their putative clients,  would be useful  for the  U.S. Trustee Program (and Bankruptcy Administrators) in evaluating what disclosures,  requirements and restrictions should be put on providers of pre-bankruptcy credit counseling briefing.  (Which certainly should be brief.) As bemoaned in Footnote 1,  financial education classes for young people would be far more effective  than credit counseling for people already in deep financial distress.  More  states seem to be  offering and even requiring high school students to take such a course,  with North Carolina instituting that in 2019.  See  N.C.G.S. § 115C‑81.65. While the article does a remarkably  good job of describing in lay person's terms the application of the Means Test,  describing it as "often somewhat awkward, to put it mildly", as seems to be de rigueur in  academic literature on consumer bankruptcy,  it  describes Chapter 13 as a less preferable option to Chapter 7 because in it  "debtors promise to relinquish three to five years’ of their future income beyond that which is necessary to support their reasonable domestic support needs".   This ignores both that if a debtor has disposable income they are not  eligible for Chapter 7 and that  the disposable income test in Chapter 13 is more generous, as it allows greater deductions for expenses,  including retirement savings, than in Chapter 7.   The  assertion that "consistently  around 90 percent of all debtors preferring chapter 7 relief pass this median-or-below income test", while probably accurate is statistical  cherry-picking,  since it does not recognize that those debtors (having competent consumer bankruptcy attorneys) that  fail the Chapter 7 Means Test generally do not file Chapter 7, either filing Chapter 13 or not filing bankruptcy at all. The ~10% who file Chapter 7 and do not receive a discharge because they fail the Means Test  almost certainly were borderline cases, had improved circumstances or did not have a lawyer. To read a copy of the transcript, please see: Blog comments Attachment Document the_market_model_of_debt_counseling_and_bankruptcy_in_the_united_states.pdf (140.38 KB) Category Law Reviews & Studies

Research Paper: Lee, Brian Jonghwan, Bankruptcy Lawyers and Credit Recovery (April, 2024). FRB of Philadelphia Working Paper No. 24-10, Ed Boltz Tue, 04/23/2024 - 16:20 Available at SSRN:  https://ssrn.com/abstract=4788212 or http://dx.doi.org/10.21799/frbp.wp.2024.10Abstract: The author studies how bankruptcy law firm advertisements affect credit recovery of households in financial distress. Exploiting the border discontinuity strategy associated with the geographic unit in which local TV advertisements are sold, the author empirically uncovers bankruptcy filings and credit recovery related to exogenous variations in bankruptcy law firm advertisements. The author first documents a significant advertising effect on filing rates and shows that advertising-induced filers are similar to existing filers. The author then finds a positive effect of advertisements on credit outcomes including credit score, new homeownership, and foreclosure. The author interprets these findings as evidence that lawyers address information frictions in households’ assessment of the bankruptcy option. Commentary: When paired with other research,  including Why Don't More Households File for Bankruptcy?,  which examined how as many of 15% of households would  benefit from filing bankruptcy,  but don't,  this paper gives meaningful insight into how the advertising and free consultation by consumer bankruptcy attorneys  overcomes,  at least in some small degree, the frictions and fictions  that keep folks from  even considering bankruptcy. It is interesting that this finds that advertising does not change or broaden the demographics of bankruptcy filers,  but instead increase the numbers of filers in those groups. Further,  this paper also finds  that "ad-induced"  filers have better post-bankruptcy outcomes in terms of credit risk scores,  new home ownership and avoidance of foreclosure. And no,  the Law Office of John T. Orcutt did not commission this research  to justify our ads.  Those speak for themselves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7k7nDyzjRY To read a copy of the transcript, please see: Blog comments Attachment Document bankruptcy_lawyers_and_credit_recovery_compressed.pdf (729.65 KB) Category Law Reviews & Studies

Whether You Can File Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and Keep Your House Depends on Your State Homestead Law Until 2020, Virginia had the worst bankruptcy homestead protection in the country. Single homeowners (Virginia has great protection for real estate owned by married couples), could protect only $5000. That was written in the Virginia Code in 1919, when $5000 would have protected almost every house in Northern Virginia. Starting July 1, 2024, single homeowners can protect up to $55,000 in equity while filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The 2020 legislature raised that $5,000 to $30,000. That was a big increase, although still small compared to 10 acres in Texas or the entire District of Columbia.   In 2024, the General Assembly raised the Virginia bankruptcy homestead again, from $30,000 to $55,000, taking effect July 1, 2024. Fairfax County Del. Marcus Simon was the key legislator pushing this through. Special thanks also go to Darden Hutson, a bankruptcy lawyer in Richmond for his hours and hours of work on this issue. This was made much easier by Democrats taking control of the Virginia Senate in the 2023 elections.  (Republicans voted overwhelmingly in favor of this change when it came to the floor, but consumer laws rarely make it out of committee when Republicans are in control.) Virginia Homestead Law Still Isn’t That Great Also this year, the state legislature in Oregon raised their exemption for single home owners from $40,000 to $150,000. The post Better Homestead for Single Homeowners in Virginia July 1 appeared first on Robert Weed Bankruptcy Attorney.

Whether You Can File Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and Keep Your House Depends on Your State Homestead Law Until 2020, Virginia had the worst bankruptcy homestead protection in the country. Single homeowners (Virginia has great protection for real estate owned by married couples), could protect only $5000. That was written in the Virginia Code in 1919, when $5000 would have protected almost every house in Northern Virginia. Starting July 1, 2024, single homeowners can protect up to $55,000 in equity while filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The 2020 legislature raised that $5,000 to $30,000. That was a big increase, although still small compared to 10 acres in Texas or the entire District of Columbia.   In 2024, the General Assembly raised the Virginia bankruptcy homestead again, from $30,000 to $55,000, taking effect July 1, 2024. Fairfax County Del. Marcus Simon was the key legislator pushing this through. Special thanks also go to Darden Hutson, a bankruptcy lawyer in Richmond for his hours and hours of work on this issue. This was made much easier by Democrats taking control of the Virginia Senate in the 2023 elections.  (Republicans voted overwhelmingly in favor of this change when it came to the floor, but consumer laws rarely make it out of committee when Republicans are in control.) Virginia Homestead Law Still Isn’t That Great Also this year, the state legislature in Oregon raised their exemption for single home owners from $40,000 to $150,000. The post Better Homestead for Single Homeowners in Virginia July 1 appeared first on Robert Weed Bankruptcy Attorney.