Behm Law Group, Bankruptcy Attorneys

Many of the Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 cases we work with are either individuals or households filing for bankruptcy. For those struggling financially with debts accumulated over the years, bankruptcy is often a beneficial option. When it comes to a family in need of bankruptcy help, it can actually be a good thing for married couples to own joint property. Owning property with your spouse plays a big role in a household’s ability to double exemptions. Behm Law Group, Ltd. provides expert legal advice and assistance to help a household work with exemptions and petitioning for bankruptcy in Windom, MN.

Exemptions

Exemptions are allotted amounts that depend on variables like federal or state regulations and the total of a debt. You may apply exemptions to certain properties during the bankruptcy process to prevent some or all of the value of those properties to be used for debt repayment.

Using your exemptions during a Chapter 7 case can significantly increase the amount of your property you may keep. In Chapter 13, more exemptions equal less paid back to unsecured creditors during your repayment plan.

 Doubling

If you’re married, you might have the option of filing for joint bankruptcy with your spouse. A joint case, however, is only applicable if you have debts that are in both of your names, meaning you jointly owe a debt such as jointly obligated on a house mortgage. If you and your spouse both have your names on the assets that would be subject to the bankruptcy process, you can then double your exemptions on those joint assets.

Doubling your exemptions in a joint case means you and your spouse are each able to claim the amount you would claim as an individual filer. In Minnesota, filers are able to choose between federal exemptions and state exemptions, depending on their debt amounts and abilities to double an exemption.

For example: The Minnesota Motor Vehicle Exemption allows up to $4,600 of an for people who own motor vehicles. If you and your spouse are both listed on the title of a vehicle worth $9,200, you both have an ownership interest in and to that vehicle.  In order to protect and keep it in a bankruptcy proceeding each of you could assert your independent $4,600 exemptions and stack them together ($4,600 x 2 = $9,200) and protect the entire $9,200 value of the vehicle.

If you and your spouse are considering filing for bankruptcy in Windom, MN, keep in mind that you can jointly file and, if you both own the subject property/assets, double or stack your bankruptcy exemptions. For more information about your options with joint bankruptcy, contact Behm Law Group, Ltd. at (507) 387-7200.