“Dear Steve,
i have worked 22 years with the same company
i have a credit card that i owe 15,000 my credit was very good up until i lost my job because it closed down now i am only working part time and just bearly getting by i also have a daughter 25 years old she is still looking for a job so now i am trying to help her out with her card she has 2,000 debt from when she was in school i have decided to go through chapter 7 bankrupcy
my question is my brother has a boat i helped him get when my credit was good they put the boat in my name because he did not have enough credit he is paying for the boat it is under his bank account # when i file for chapter can they take the boat away from him
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Bill”
Dear Bill,
There is a process that can allow you to keep the boat. It’s called reaffirmation. BUT there are some serious consequences for doing so and you will be on the hook for the rest of the loan if your brother stops paying and you will not be able to discharge it in bankruptcy.
I’ve seen people reaffirm loans and similar obligations successfully and everything works out fine. I’ve also seen these situations later turn to crap when the underlying person stops making payments for some reason and leaves the signer stuck.
I’m not saying that you should not do it, just that you need to be aware what the risks are and then make a decision in conjunction with your bankruptcy attorney.
Please post your responses and follow-up messages to me on this in the comments section below.
