Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Pennsylvania

What happens, assuming you do absolutely nothing, is that at least one of the creditors will proceed to sue you. If that happens, the creditor will recover a judgment.

You do not relate your circumstances - income, assets and liabilities nor do you indicate what kinds of loans these are and what the secured loans are secured by. A house? A car?

If a loan is secured by a car and you do not pay, the creditor can repossess the car and sell it. Vehicles are sold at auto auction for a lot less than they are worth and usually a deficiency is left owing. If that happens the creditor then sues and will recover a judgment. With a judgment, the creditor can levy bank accounts and other assets that are just in your name and owned free and clear.

With unsecured loans, the creditor will sue and get a judgment and then try to collect by levying bank accounts and seizing property owned free and clear.

There is no wage garnishment in PA assuming these loans were taken out in PA and you only work for a PA employer. You can keep up to $300 in any one bank account in PA safe from execution. There is no exemption in PA for motor vehicles, land or anything else. But whether a creditor will seize other things depends on what you have, what its worth and how it is titled. If the item cannot be seized and sold, judgments become a lien on any real property and will have to be paid if the property is sold. Judgments earn interest at a rate of 6% and are good for execution purposes against real property for 5 years unless revived. Judgments can be executed against personal property for 20 years.

Much depends on your circumstances as well as the identity of the creditors and any law firms. I would suggest that if you are early on in terms of delinquency, that you pay for a more specific consult with a local attorney if you are facing a lawsuit and have possible defenses/objections (like the statute of limitations). If you have been served, act quickly; PA law only gives you 20 days to respond or you will potentially lose valuable rights.

If you have over $10,000 in dischargeable debt, you may want to explore bankruptcy as an option. In such case, skip the litigation attorney and see a bankruptcy attorney instead. Some bankruptcy attorneys give free consults and I suggest that you take advantage of that.

If you are early on in the process and are not being sued and do not want to file bankruptcy for whatever reason, and if you are interested in resolving your debts, then perhaps you should consult with me or another consumer lawyer who handles defense of these types of debts to review your situation and see how best to help. Please contact me at [email protected] if interested.