Posted On: April 19, 2010
Pinellas Man Staves Off Foreclosure by Filing Chapter 13 Bankruptcy 11 Times
One Jacksonville bankruptcy attorney notes with interest a recent St. Petersburg Times article about a Pinellas man who has been able to stay in his home for seven years despite the fact he has not made a mortgage payment since 2003.The Times’ article reports:
“...in 2004, the DeMauros filed their first Chapter 13 petition just before the house was to be sold at public auction. A judge soon dismissed the case, but the sale already had been stopped.
Over the next few years, the DeMauros were in and out of bankruptcy as new sale dates were scheduled. Their 11th and most recent filing came Jan. 25 — a day before the house again was to go on the block.
Bankruptcy officials have a name for debtors like the DeMauros: "serial filers.''
"We are sensitive to serial filers and our system was set up so we could catch them right away,'' says Catherine Peek McEwen, a Tampa bankruptcy judge.
Under a "three-strikes and you're out'' rule, debtors on a third filing get no relief from foreclosure if they had two cases pending in the previous year. In addition, judges are giving banks and other creditors more opportunity to request a one- or two-year ban on filings by those who seem to be abusing the system. And judges can order serial filers to appear in person and show cause why their case should not be dismissed."
If you are facing potential foreclosure and need information on all your options, contact our Jacksonville, Florida bankruptcy law firm.
Greg Gilbert
Keith Maynard
