Legal Question in Bankruptcy in California

The question of how FHA is going to view the bankruptcy then foreclosure, or the impact on your credit report as a result of that activity is really not a legal question - it is much more of a practical question that should be answered by someone conversant with the credit scoring and loan underwriting processes. Technically, if you did not reaffirm the debt then it should already be reflected on your credit report as discharged in bankrutpcy. Pull your credit report, and see how they are reporting it. That will generally answer your question.

The cause of action a lender has against a homeowner post-foreclosure for willful damage to the property is called Waste. That cause of action may or may not have been discharged in the bankruptcy, depending upon when the cause of action arose. I think it would be difficult to avoid liability for waste because the bank will assert that the waste occured AFTER your bankruptcy was filed. Is removing appliances and other "parts" of the home considered waste - that's a factual question that I cannot answer in this post. You need to review that with a local attorney. Do understand, however, that Waste is not a cause of action under the loan - it is a separate lawsuit that is completely independent of the foreclosure and any bar that exists for them to sue you for a deficiency. My personal opinion is that with the exception of the refrigerator (unless it is built-in) and the washer & dryer, all other appliances really are fixtures to the home and should not be removed at foreclosure.

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