When you file for bankruptcy (especially chapter 7 bankruptcy), you don’t get to keep absolutely everything you want. Certain assets just aren’t protected.

For example, let’s say you are single and you own two vehicles. Both cars are paid off. The court is only going to allow you to keep one of them in most cases. The other would likely be auctioned off by the court, and the money would be divided among your creditors.

When you’ve got assets that you bought and paid for, is it worth losing them when you file?

After all, you are eliminating tons of debt. Maybe sacrificing a second vehicle is worth it in the end.

Or maybe not.

There’s got to be a way to protect that asset. You certainly don’t want your creditors getting a piece of it, do you?

What if I just give it away?

Your son needs a car anyway. You might as well give it to him. Or maybe you could just title it in a friend’s name before filing and then put it back into your name when your case is over.

Those sound like some clever ideas. I think we’ve got this thing all figured out.

Wait!

Before you do anything, you’ll want to wait until next week for part 2. It’s typical – just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, somebody throws a monkey wrench into the works. I can tell you now that if you do anything we just discussed, you could wind up in jail. So please, please, please wait!