The questions everyone is afraid to ask.

No. This is the single biggest myth. Florida has some of the strongest exemptions in the country, including the homestead exemption, which can protect your home entirely in most cases. Personal property, retirement accounts, and a portion of vehicle equity are also protected. Most Chapter 7 filers in Florida keep everything they own.

Usually not. Florida's homestead exemption is one of the broadest in the country and can protect the full value of your primary residence in most cases, subject to acreage limits and a residency period for recent arrivals. If you are behind on the mortgage, Chapter 13 exists precisely to catch up those arrears over 3 to 5 years while you stay in the house.

Usually yes. If you are current on payments, you can typically keep the car by continuing to pay. If you are behind, Chapter 13 lets you catch up the arrears inside your plan. Florida exemptions also protect a portion of vehicle equity, and in some cases you can redeem the car for its current value.

Usually not. Bankruptcy is a public court record, but no one notifies your employer in a typical Chapter 7. In Chapter 13, plan payments can sometimes run through payroll, but direct payments can often be arranged instead. Federal law prohibits both government and private employers from firing you because you filed.

Filings are public court records, but they are not published in the newspaper and there is no list posted anywhere your neighbors browse. In practice, the people who learn about a consumer case are the people you tell, your creditors, and the court.

No. The Bankruptcy Code is federal law that Congress wrote for honest people and businesses carrying more debt than any reasonable plan can repay. Airlines, retailers, and household-name companies have used it to reorganize and move forward. Using a legal tool the law built for your exact situation is a decision, not a defeat.

Not automatically. One spouse can file alone. The non-filing spouse's separate debts and credit are not directly affected, and Florida's tenancy by the entireties rules can give married couples additional protection for jointly owned property. Whether to file alone or together is a strategy question worth looking at carefully.

Two ways. The 3-minute online check asks plain questions, in English or Spanish, and gives you a first read on which chapter fits. Or you can simply call (305) 792-9100 and talk it through. Either way, the attorney reviews everything before any case begins.

Chapter 7 typically runs about 4 to 6 months from filing to discharge. Chapter 13 is a 3 to 5 year plan, though the protection starts the day you file. Chapter 11 varies by case, and Subchapter V is built for speed, with a reorganization plan due in 90 days.

It is the income screen for Chapter 7. If your household income is below the Florida median for your household size, you generally pass. If you are above it, a more detailed calculation of your real expenses decides the question. And if your debt is primarily business debt, the means test does not apply at all.

The core list for most consumer cases: photo ID and Social Security card, six months of pay stubs, two years of tax returns, three to six months of bank statements, a list of debts and assets, and a certificate from a short approved credit counseling course. The portal turns this into a checklist tailored to your exact case.

The 341 meeting of creditors is a short, recorded meeting with the trustee, held between day 21 and day 50 after filing. It is usually minutes long, creditors rarely appear, and many districts hold it by phone or video. Most consumer filers never stand in front of a judge at all.

Federal law requires a short course from an approved provider before you file, and a second short course on financial management after. Both can be done online or by phone, usually in about an hour each. We send you the links to approved providers.

The automatic stay takes effect the moment your petition is filed, by operation of law. Your employer's payroll department and the garnishing creditor are notified the same day. The garnishment typically stops with the next pay cycle after payroll receives notice, and wages taken in violation of the stay must be returned. Timing varies by employer, and past results do not predict future outcomes.

Filing the bankruptcy petition triggers the automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362, which halts most pending lawsuits and collection judgments against you. Creditors who want to continue must ask the bankruptcy court for permission, and for ordinary debt collection cases that permission is rarely worth their while.

There is a court filing fee set by the judiciary (a few hundred dollars) plus attorney fees, which are quoted flat and up front after your portal assessment is reviewed. In Chapter 13, most attorney fees are paid through the plan itself rather than before filing. You pay nothing until the attorney has reviewed and approved your case. Court costs and filing fees may apply and are explained in writing before any case begins.

The discharge covers most unsecured debt: credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, deficiency balances after a repossession or foreclosure, most old utility and phone bills, and many judgments. These are usually the debts doing the most damage.

Some debts generally are not discharged: most student loans (absent a separate hardship showing), domestic support obligations like child support and alimony, recent income taxes, criminal fines and restitution, and debts incurred by fraud. If you keep a house or car loan, that lien survives too, and you keep paying it to keep the property.

Some income tax debt can be discharged if it is old enough and the returns were filed on time, under rules that look at the age of the tax year, when the return was filed, and when the tax was assessed. Newer taxes usually survive but can often be paid through a Chapter 13 plan without further penalties piling up.

Almost always. 401(k)s, IRAs, pensions, and most other qualified retirement accounts are protected in bankruptcy by federal and Florida law, in most cases without any dollar limit that matters in practice. Cashing out a retirement account to pay unsecured debt before exploring bankruptcy is one of the most expensive mistakes people make.

Money in your accounts on the filing date must be listed and is protected up to your available exemptions. If a creditor has already frozen your account with a levy before you file, filing the case stops further collection, and depending on timing some funds can be recovered. This is a timing question worth raising early.

No. The law requires every debt to be listed, which is what makes the discharge so complete. But listing a debt is not the same as losing the property behind it: you can usually keep paying a car or house loan you want to keep, through what is called reaffirmation or simply by staying current.

Yes. Many filers begin receiving credit offers within months of discharge, because lenders know the old debt is gone and a new filing is barred for years. With disciplined rebuilding, credit profiles can recover meaningfully over the following one to two years. Every credit history is different, and past results do not predict future outcomes.

Government-backed mortgage programs publish waiting periods that start at discharge, commonly around two years for FHA and VA loans after Chapter 7, and sometimes sooner out of a completed Chapter 13, subject to lender requirements. The clock starts at discharge, which is one reason waiting to file often just delays the rebuild.

A Chapter 7 can be reported for up to 10 years from filing, a Chapter 13 for up to 7. But the report is not the score: the score reflects current balances and payment history, and discharged accounts must be reported with zero balances. Many people see their score begin to recover within the first year.

The discharge is the court order that ends the case for you: it permanently bars creditors from ever collecting the discharged debts. Calls, letters, lawsuits, all of it. A creditor who violates the discharge can be held in contempt of court.

Yes, after waiting periods set by law: for example, eight years between Chapter 7 discharges, and shorter periods between other combinations. Filing once does not use up your protection forever, although the goal of a well-planned case is to never need a second one.

Three habits do most of the work: keep one secured or starter credit card paid in full each month, keep utilization low, and check your reports to confirm discharged accounts show zero balances. The free guides on this site include a 12-month rebuild plan you can follow step by step.