“Dear Steve,
My husband and I just recently bought our second home in Florida with the plan to rent out our first home with no luck, we only get enough to pay the association fee and Home equity line but not the mortgage. We have now seperated and I live in the new home and have charged up my credit cards for numerous reasons such as repairs on the old home, bills, food etc. I can not afford to pay the debt any longer and afford to live. I feel like the only avenue I have not done is bankruptcy, debt consolidation is too much also. My husband has been very helpful trying to help me out but he is worried if i do this it can affect him to.
My first home is only in my name but the equity line is in both of our names. The credit cards I have used are only in my name also, he is not even a signer. My husband is concerned that if I do this they can come after him or ruin his credit.
He has been paying the home equity line as to not ruin his credit. I feel for him and do not know what to do because he is letting me have the house to raise our children in but if I ruin his credit he will have a hard time moving on and suppling for his children in the future.
I have a car and a home so I can slowly rebuild my credit but he will need those things shortly and if this affects him he will be very bad off for something he did not do.
If I claim bankruptcy will this affect my husband, if so how? If so if we get divorced then I file will it affect him?
Maria”
The Answer:
Dear Maria,
All the other possibilities aside, hasn’t the question kind of answered itself already? You’ve already said you can’t afford your bills, even a repayment plan. You’ve used your credit cards to finance a life you can’t afford on your income. Your options are limited and leave you with actually no good choices.
Frankly, I don’t really give a damn how this impacts your husband, the bottom line here is you need a plan on how to get by within your income. The only logical option at this point is going to be to go bankrupt and let the chips fall where they may.
You can wish all you want that your husband will not be drawn into this mess but that’s irrelevant. In fact since you are both on the home equity line, your bankruptcy will be reported on his credit report for that loan.
Without some action on your part you will be sued and if you default on your new house payment, you could be out on the street.
You need to stop stalling and click here to find a local bankruptcy attorney to talk to. Do it before it’s too late and trust me, it’s getting towards “too late” in a hurry here. Take action now so you and the kids can be safe in Florida.
These things happen in divorce all the time. Divorce is an agreement between you and your husband, not your creditors. All legal obligations and agreements with creditors remain in force after your divorce. Divorce won’t change the debt issue although you may come to a mutual agreement about who will pay what between you.
If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form. I’m happy to help you totally for free.