People considering filing bankruptcy to help solve their financial problems often want to know which property or possessions they will lose and which they will be able to keep when they file. The answer depends on which type of bankruptcy is filed. In a Chapter 13, you get to keep everything, but you are required to pay all or a portion of your debts out through a payment plan. In a Chapter 7, you must turn all of your property over to the bankruptcy Trustee other than the items that are exempt according to bankruptcy law. By looking at the bankruptcy law exemptions, you can decide what you will be allowed to keep.
In Texas, the debtor is allowed to use either the Federal Bankruptcy Law Exemptions or the Texas Law Exemptions, but you can not mix and match. You must choose one set of laws or the other. Texas laws allow more exemptions for the debtor in most cases, so the discussion below will cover the Texas Law exemptions.
Homestead Exemption: Under Texas Bankruptcy Code, there is no limit to the amount of value in that is exempt in the debtors homestead. The size limitation of a homestead if it is located in a city, town or village is that property cannot exceed 1 acre. For property located outside of a city, town or village, is limited is 100 acres for and individual or 200 acres for a family. In order to be eligible for this exemption, you must have lived in Texas for 2 years and have purchased the property at least 1215 days (3.3 years) before the date of filing.
Personal Property Exemptions: In Texas, a single debtor can keep up to $30,000 of personal property and a family can keep up to $60,000 of personal property. The property the debtor owns is valued at resale (or garage sale) prices.
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