Legal Question in Bankruptcy in North Carolina

I assume your friend wants to retain his home. He/She has more than one remedy. The first, of course, is to negotiate with the creditor. It appears that that remedy will not work. Your friend should consult counsel to see if there is state law or federal law remedies that are linked to the nature of his mortgage and debt to value ratio. Bankruptcy remains an option. Your friend should consult a bankruptcy lawyer. He/She is eligible for a Chapter 13. There is an 8 year wait period between Chapter 7 cases. There is only a 2 year waiting period following a Chapter 13 discharge and a 4 year waiting period following a Chapter 7 discharge and a 180 day waiting period for most dismissals of Chapter 13 or 7. Your friend must meet the other requirements of filing Chapter 13, such as taking the debtor counseling, etc. A Chapter 13 requires a plan which allows the debtor to pay in his/her net disposable income and direct some or all of it to cure default in the mortgage. There are other options if the debt is secured by more than the real estate and structure which is used as a residence. The doubling of payments seems to be excessive. The matter of lender abuse could be addressed in any court with jurisdiction, including bankruptcy. Of course, any court with jurisdiction could issue an injunction against sale while the matters of abuse are determined. The filing of a bankruptcy automatically invokes an injunction against sale and allows time to either cure the default in a plan and/or explore problem issues with the way the creditor has increased the payment.