Bankruptcy after divorce question
bankruptcy attorney Florida Jul 30, 2026
Location: Michigan It's a long complicated story, but the basics are I am divorcing my husband, who is under criminal investigation. We expect he will lose his job at some point. The divorce is amicable and we have hired one attorney to set out the terms and file with the court. There are not a lot of assets, but there is a house and the contents. We are both on the deed to the house but only my husband is on the mortgage. There is a lot of debt - student loans for each of us, car loans for each of us, the mortgage, and credit card debt. Most of the credit card debt is in my name because my husband was a "credit ghost" when we got married. The divorce attorney suggested I consider bankruptcy, so I met with a bankruptcy attorney. I did but now I'm more confused about how all of this would play out. Scenario one: husband loses his job. I cannot afford the house and debts with my income alone, so quit paying credit cards, call the attorney, and file bankruptcy immediately. Scenario two: husband keeps his job through the divorce process (hearing set for Nov. 10). I assume the cc debt in my name, turn in my car, and file chapter 7 once the divorce is finalized. Bankruptcy attorney doesn't really have an idea for how I rent somewhere with my existing debt though and suggested I live in a used RV for 3 years and rent a lot. He did not really have a suggestion for what to do in the winter other than "move to Florida," which leaves me without a job. What I don't understand is how all of this plays out if we sell the house, which is going on the market next week. We haven't owned it very long, so if we get the list price, it will net 65K - not enough to cover the cc debt (77K). I'm hoping liquidating the contents of the house will net another 8K. But the bankruptcy attorney said he can only protect about 15K in assets and 16K in cash. So what happens to the cash from the house sale? Would I be looking at chapter 13 then? And how does any of this get written into a divorce decree????
