Here are five or the most important steps to take when protecting your assets from lawsuits.

Answer:

• a secured loan: e.g. a mortgage can result in a foreclosure of the house, an auto loan can result in a repossession of the car, etc.
• some unsecured loans that require a court judgment can seize your property through a Request and Order to Seize Property.

A judgment may allow creditors to seize personal property, levy bank accounts, put liens on real property, and initiate wage garnishments. Generally, judgments are valid for several years before they expire. The statute of limitations dictates how long a judgment creditor can attempt to collect the debt.

1. Step 1: Asset Protection Trust.
2. Step 2: Divide and Conquer.
3. Step 3: Utilize Your Retirement Accounts.
4. Step 4: Homestead Exemption.
5. Step 5: Eliminate Your Assets.

Limitations on debt collection by state

Credit card debt is unsecured debt. In order to lose your home, several things would have to happen. First, you would have to be sued in court and lose. If that were to happen your creditors would receive a judgment against you ordering you to pay.

Credit card debt, unlike mortgage debt, is unsecured debt. This means your credit card company can’t come immediately take your stuff — including your home or car — when you don’t pay.

Credit Card Debt: Yes The newest stimulus act does not include protections against private creditors and collectors. That means if you have credit card debt, your stimulus funds might be garnished.

Tools creditors can use to collect a judgment If the creditor chooses not to wait for you to sell or refinance the property, the creditor can try to “foreclose” on the judgment lien. This means that the creditor forces you to sell the property and pay what you owe with that money.

Credit card companies sue for non-payment in about 15% of collection cases. Usually debt holders only have to worry about lawsuits if their accounts become 180-days past due and charge off, or default.

The short answer is no, a debt collector cannot take your house. However, a creditor whose loan is secured by your house can foreclose on the loan and take the house, and depending on your state laws, a debt collector without a security interest in your home may be able to put a lien on it.

With credit cards, you’re loaned money based on your personal promise to pay it back. Unsecured debt creditors can’t repossess your car or foreclose your home to get their money back, generally speaking. If you default on a credit card, the issuing company must file suit in court to obtain a money judgment against you.

Each state has a law referred to as a statute of limitations that spells out the time period during which a creditor or collector may sue borrowers to collect debts. In most states, they run between four and six years after the last payment was made on the debt.

Yes, your wages can be garnished over an unpaid credit card debt — especially if the debt ends up going to collections. Although many people associate wage garnishment with unpaid child support, defaulted student loans or back taxes, courts can also order your wages to be garnished over an outstanding credit card debt.

Financial institutions typically don’t sue customers who owe less than $1,000 or are making regular payments. As such, you shouldn’t need to worry about a lawsuit unless you owe a substantial amount and are well behind on your payments.