Portland Bankruptcy Attorney

Bankruptcy Lawyer Portland Or

Portland Bankruptcy Attorney
CALL 503-380-7822
email-iconmap-marker
  • Home
  • Bankruptcy
    • Personal Bankruptcy
    • Business Bankruptcy
    • Zero Down Bankruptcy
    • Foreclosure
    • Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
    • Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
  • Estate Planning
  • About
  • Contact

Stripping Judgment Liens from Your Home’s Title

September 17, 2010 by Chris Kane

In our last blog we covered “junior mortgage lien stripping,” emphasizing that it’s only available by filing a Chapter 13 case, NOT Chapter 7. But THIS blog covers another very important tool for saving your home which can work in BOTH Chapter 7 and 13: “judgment lien avoidance.” Here’s how this one works.

If a creditor files a lawsuit against you and gets a judgment, that judgment usually attaches to your home as an involuntary lien against your home’s title, a judgment lien. If you sold or refinanced your home, that judgment would have to be paid in full, usually along with continuously accruing interest plus the creditor’s costs of litigation.

The key to avoiding a judgment lien is the homestead exemption. This exemption is a right granted to you by the state to protect a certain amount of equity in your home from your creditors. Different states’ homestead exemption laws protect different amounts of home equity. In Oregon, you can protect $40,000 of equity in a home owned by a single person, $50,000 of equity in a home owned by a husband and wife. You can only avoid judgment liens on real estate that is your homestead, generally speaking, your “actual abode.”

Whether a judgment lien can be avoided depends on a bunch of numbers: #1) the value of the real estate, #2) the total amount of the liens on this real estate which are legally superior to the judgment lien—generally the outstanding property taxes, the mortgage(s) or trust deed(s), and sometimes other earlier tax or judgment liens, #3) the amount of the applicable homestead exemption (usually $40,000 or $50,000), and #4) the amount of the judgment lien.

The entire judgment lien can be “avoided”—erased off the title—if that lien “impairs,” or cuts into, your homestead exemption. That is, if after subtracting the superior liens (#2) from the value of the property (#1), the equity in the property to which the judgment lien (#4) would attach is less than the value of the homestead exemption (#3), then that entire judgment lien can be “avoided.”

Here’s an example to show how it works. Assume you are single, and have a judgment against you for $15,000:

$    250,000     Value of Home

–   $220,000     First (& only) Mortgage and any unpaid property tax

$      30,000     Equity in home to which the judgment lien would attach.

Since this $30,000 equity in the property to which the $15,000 judgment lien would attach is less than the value of the applicable $40,000 homestead exemption, that entire judgment lien could be avoided through either Chapter 7 or Chapter 13.

“Judgment lien avoidance” takes a special procedure, and can be challenged by the judgment creditor on various grounds. Contact us so we can show you how to undo the advantage that the creditor got over you by getting a judgment on your home.

Portland Bankruptcy Law Group has the experience and knowledge to handle your case. Our bankruptcy lawyers are extremely familiar with and are well versed in all aspects of bankruptcy law. Contact us today!

Filed Under: Real Estate

Welcome to the Portland Bankruptcy Law Blog

I'd like to help you overcome your financial problems. One good way to start is to provide you with accurate and timely information about the bankruptcy laws. I do that here through informative blog posts, with a new one published here every week. I've been doing this for years so there is a wealth of information for you here.

But please be aware that since you are unique person you need a highly personalized solution to your challenges. That requires the analysis and advice of a conscientious and highly experienced attorney. That's really the only sensible way to get the benefit of the many powerful and effective remedies that the law provides.

So I hope the information provided here is helpful to you. Please contact me for guidance to a much better place:

503-380-7822

Recent Posts

  • No link found between bankruptcy and employment prospects
  • Creditor found in violation of automatic bankruptcy stay
  • What are the short- and long-term credit impacts of bankruptcy?
  • Bankruptcy Attorney Portland, Or | Bankruptcy Lawyer Oregon | Christopher J. Kane P.C.

Categories of Blog Posts

  • Portland Bankruptcy Attorney
  • Personal Bankruptcy
  • Business Bankruptcy
  • Stop Foreclosure
  • Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
  • Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
  • Zero Down Bankruptcy
  • Filing Bankruptcy in Oregon
  • Testimonials
  • FAQ
  • Blog

FREE CONSULTATION

GET A FREE CONFIDENTIAL CONSULTATION THIS MONTH.
*Please see below.

CONTACT

Christopher J. Kane, P.C.

Address: 2207 NE Broadway, Suite 100, Portland OR 97232

Phone: 503-380-7822

Email: chris@ckanelaw.com


We are a debt relief agency.

We proudly help people understand their options and, if appropriate, help them file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.

DIRECTIONS

CONNECT

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
Avvo - Rate your Lawyer. Get Free Legal Advice.
Best Bankruptcy lawyers in Portland
Best Bankruptcy Lawyers in Portland

* Using this form, or email, for communicating with us does not establish an attorney-client relationship, until we do that in writing. So please do not send confidential or time-sensitive information through this form or by email. You affirm that you have read and understand this disclaimer.
CAUTION: This website is to provide visitors with basic information about our firm, and information about how to contact us. Every situation is different, and no information on this website is legal advice on any specific question. You should not act on any of the information without first conferring with an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction. No attorney-client relationship or privilege is formed by visiting this site or by unsolicited email. Therefore, initial emails should not contain any confidential information. We may already represent parties adverse to you and cannot advise or represent you until we check for conflicts. We are licensed only in Oregon and offer our services only to those doing business in Oregon, unless we are associated with local counsel in accordance with other states laws. The applicable laws may have changed after the information on this website was published. While effort is made to keep the information current, you should not presume that all information is up to date. You must confer with an attorney to be sure you have current information.
Copyright © 2021 · Christopher J. Kane Attorney at Law · 503-380-7822 · Designed by Artizon Digital