Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Pennsylvania
Facts: I have a $1200 Judgement against me in the state of Pa. The creditor is trying to enforce the judgement by executing a Sherriffs sale of my personal household property which is owned jointly by my wife and myself. The judgement is against me alone and my wife intends to object on the grounds that the property is jointly owned. When the constable came to my house last week I was smart enought NOT to invite him in and so the only property he could write down was located outside. Some of which is owned by my landlord who intends to file an objection as well. The constable is telling me that there is not much here and the creditor cannot enter the property in order to get more stuff to write down and he suggested I try to work something out with the creditor. So I called this landscape company and the individual who is suing me refuses to work it out and says if the items are not worth it he will get a court order to enter the property and write down other stuff. Now, here are my questions: 1. Can he get a court order to enter the property in order to get more stuff and what is the likelyhood that a district judge would enter such an order? The constable says in his 14 years of experience he has never seen it done. 2. Since we have no assets such as realestate or money in bank accounts is my wife entitle to filing an objection to the household goods since it is legitimately co-owned by her and what is the likely hood that the judge would grant an exception? 3.Is there anything I can do on my own to handle this case since it is such a small amount. I have read all kinds of things on the internet and most of it lead me to believe that since my wife does indeed own 1/2 of the marital property....we wont have to worry about losing our stuff.
1 Answer from Attorneys
You ask if he can get a court order. Yes and no. He can propound additional discovery by serving you with what are called interrogatories (written questions). He would need a lawyer to do this and the fact that you are talking to him and getting legal advice from him which is not correct tells me he does not have one. However, don't get your legal advice from him either. If he sends you interrogatories, I have seen forms where you can request a hearing and can tell the judge about your possessions and the judge will decide. However, I am not familiar with the procedures in the eastern part of PA - each county might have a slightly different procedure so I don't want to tell you wrong.
Stuff that actually belongs to your wife or the landlord cannot be seized by the sheriff at all. For things that are owned jointly by you and your wife, I have clients indicate that 1/2 of the item is marital. The creditor can seize the item but has to compensate your wife for her half of the value so it may not be worth it. But if you have 2 tvs, I can see a judge giving your wife one and allowing the creditor to sell one.
If you have no real estate, that cannot be seized. Nor can things that have liens on them like cars.
Judgments on land can last for 5 years and can be renewed; judgments on personal property (cars, etc.) can last for 20 years. They never really go away. And they earn interest at a rate of 6% per year and will only get bigger. So you have got to resolve it somewhow.
Although you have no land (there is no homestead exemption in PA), they cannot touch less than $300 in your bank account, IRAs/pensions/401(k)s, and things like Social Security, VA benefits or unemployment benefits. There is no exemption for things like household goods and I have seen one situation where a bank who was creditor tried to a bed and household items of a client of mine. These things never bring in much money and are hardly worthwhile. It costs money to hold a sale and if the judgment is not that large they might not even do it (which would explain why the creditor does not have a lawyer). There also is no wage garnishment (except in a few limited circumstances - like back rent owed to a landlord or child support).
How much is the judgment? He does not have to settle with you or allow you to make payments. I have one creditor for a client (a credit union) which is insisting on 100% so it does happen. Howeever, most creditors will take between 50% and 80% if they want paid badly enough.
If you don't have the funds, wait until you have at least 50% of whatever the judgment is when you have the funds (remember, the judgment will earn interest) and offer to pay that. If he says no, see if he will allow you to make a down payment and pay the rest over 3-6 months. If that is not doable, keep saving and try again when you have 75%. If he still says no, then you will have to keep increasing your offers until he says yes. Of course, this would depend on your circumstances. If you are elderly and on a fixed income, I might tell him to go pound salt for awhile whereas are if you are in your mid-40s and may need credit again, I would give a different answer.
The judgment does not sound as if it is worth filing bankruptcy over, so I would only do this if you have a lot of other debts.
Although I live in NC, I settle debts for my GA and PA clients (as I am admitted in those states). If you are interested in having me help you for a reasonable fee, feel free to email me at [email protected].
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