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marshall
Starting Member
3 Posts |
 Posted - 30 September 2010 : 23:23:56
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Hi i am thinking about going bankrupt and to see if i would qualify? any help would be gratefully recieved.
My girlfriend and I owe unsecured debt of about £34000 and have a mortgage of £139000, my house is has recently been valued at about £146000.
Due to the recession me and my girlfriend had both lost our jobs down the line and my girlfriend still has not found one. Between us we bring in just over £1500 a month and our outgoings are higher than our income (this is basic living with one dependant set by a debt charity). There is no available income to pay any of our creditors.
We are trying to sell our house but with no luck and as we do not get any financial assistance ie housing benefit. I think the only option available is bankruptcy for both of us and start fresh.
Please can someone answer the following questions?
.Can i go bankrupt while still under an agreement with the estate agents? (to market our property)
.Can we go bankrupt together?
.My girlfriend is not in work but i am, how long would bankruptcy last for for both of us?
.Would we qualify?
.I have work pensions that are not of much value, would these be taken away and my work pension cancelled? (approx £2500 all together)
.If you have any advice, that'd be great.
Many thanks for your time. |
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Reviva UK
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
2452 Posts |
Posted - 30 September 2010 : 23:47:51
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Lots of questions which is good
Is your girlfriend on the mortgage?
You also need to advise on the split of the debts, I.e what is yours and what is your girlfriends.
Re the house - if the house gets an offer of 142k or less there will be insufficient equity to pay the estate agent and solicitor. When sold what are you going to do / where are you going to live?
It may be possible to keep the house , still go br and clear your unsecured debts.
Probably worth a conversation with one of the experts to go through all your options.
Paul
Paul Johns
Bankruptcy Specialists
Reviva UK
www.revivauk.com
08454 751 851
Real People ..... Real Debt Solutions |
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Bigal4787
forum expert
United Kingdom
641 Posts |
Posted - 01 October 2010 : 00:18:44
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Marshall,
in answer to your questions:
1. Yes you can still sell the house whilst petitioning for bankruptcy, however it should be done at what is called "arms length", i.e. you should not have any involvement, as if it goes for substantially less than market value, creditors could argue that you influenced the sale so that they didn't benefit from the sale. From the figures provided, there may be a small surplus, but in todays market there might not, if there is a shortfall it can be claimed in bankruptcy as it becomes an unsecured liability.
2.In situations like yours,many couples can and do declare bankruptcy together.
3.It doesn't matter whether you're in work or not, bankruptcy lasts for 12 months, but depending on the circumstances you could be recommended for early discharge, however this is entirely at the discretion of the OR.
4.From the information provided you can petition for bankruptcy.
5. As long as your pension is HMRC approved, the OR will not claim your pensions in the bankruptcy estate. However,if you're drawing one it will count as income for assessing any IPA(income payments agreement).
Big Al |
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marshall
Starting Member
3 Posts |
Posted - 02 October 2010 : 15:44:32
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Hi and thank you very much for your reply's.
To some of your questions. Yes my girlfriend is on the mortgage and we both are joint on a unsecured loan we got with our mortgage (together loan of £14500) we are also joint on an overdraft worth £3000, the rest of the debt goes: Myself £6500 and my girlfriend £10000.
The question on where we would live? to be honest i do not now, we were hoping we could rent and have some help ie housing benefit as we do not get help at the moment. I did not want to go bankrupt but since the recession my girlfriend an i were laid off i was lucky to find a job after a year but my girlfriend lost her job last march and has still not found employment.
Thanks for answering the question about can we go bankrupt together and how long it would last for! I was told recently that you have to apply seperate and that because i am in full time work i would not be discharged from bankruptcy for 3 years?
I was told you they only let you keep your house if they cant sell it within 3 years? is this correct? and if they do keep control of your house for 3 years are you still only bankrupt for 12 months and can you personally be considered for early discharge?
Please any more feedback would be great!
Thanks Again! |
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debtinfo
forum expert
2826 Posts |
Posted - 02 October 2010 : 18:37:01
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Hi Marshall, how long they have to deal with your assets has nothing to do with how long you are bankrupt for, as long as you cooperate it is always 12 months or less.
It sounds like the person you have been speaking to has read half of the information and then tried to pass it on incorrectly.
If you are asked to pay a monthly payment this can be for up to 3 years and can be varied throughout depending on your circumstances, it all depends on how much if any disposable income you have after paying your bills.
The OR has up to 3 years to deal with the property,(this is an improvement, they used to have an indefinite period of time), the OR will try and sort it out as soon as possible, they dont want to keep hold of properties for a long time |
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Bigal4787
forum expert
United Kingdom
641 Posts |
Posted - 03 October 2010 : 13:31:02
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Marshall,
regarding both of you declaring bankruptcy,it still has to be done on seperate petitions, the joint one is what's known as a form 16 partnership bankruptcy, which only applies if you were trading as a partnership.
As debt info said the advice you've been given hasn't been helpful, leading you to have all these worries. There's plenty of advice from the experts on this forum to help you through a difficult time.
Big Al |
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Reviva UK
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
2452 Posts |
Posted - 04 October 2010 : 08:55:45
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I would agree that the advice / info you had previously received was completely incorrect.
Unfortunately many people believe they are experts in lots of things and readily give advice on anything. Stay clear of these people as they are really not helpful.
You wouldn;t seek their advice on a heart attack or a tooth complaint or how to build a house. They are probably good at what they do for a living but insolvency isn;t one of them.
The forum in a good place to get advice, check your thoughts, see previous posts and if you need to speak directly to one of the experts.
Good luck and welcome to the safe haven
Paul Johns
Bankruptcy Specialists
Reviva UK
www.revivauk.com
08454 751 851
Real People ..... Real Debt Solutions |
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marshall
Starting Member
3 Posts |
Posted - 05 October 2010 : 23:11:36
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Hi, thanks for all the replies. i do have another question. Can the unsecured debts apply to put a charge on my property while i am going bankrupt? (i.e just incase the OR can't sell my property within 3 years)
Many thanks |
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Bigal4787
forum expert
United Kingdom
641 Posts |
Posted - 06 October 2010 : 00:47:04
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Once you're bankrupt, creditors cannot apply for charges to be put on the property. Even if they had an interim one,bankruptcy would revoke it and become an unsecured debt..
This is why some people do make themselves bankrupt to prevent creditors applying to make an interim order final.
Big Al |
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Reviva UK
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
2452 Posts |
Posted - 06 October 2010 : 08:41:55
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I have had a number of cases where the client petitioned for Br at 9.00am and there was a Final Charging Order court hearing at 11am.
Paul Johns
Bankruptcy Specialists
Reviva UK
www.revivauk.com
08454 751 851
Real People ..... Real Debt Solutions |
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bankruptcy
