Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in California

If you owe the money there is no way to legally hide assets at this point, other than if you qualify for bankruptcy. Any other asset maneuvering to avoid creditors will just get you sued under fraudulent transfer law, on top of being sued for the debt. The only thing you can do for your home is if there is less than $50K equity in it after the existing mortgage(s) plus the California homestead exemptions (which vary in amount based on your age, marital status, etc.), you can record a homestead exemption declaration. A homestead declaration is not required in order to claim the exemption, but it puts judgment creditors on notice that they are wasting their time trying to go after it, if there isn't enough equity in it after pre-existing debt plus the exemption.