Chapter 13 Lien Strip Success Story

Debtor filed Chapter 13 bankruptcy in 2012.  Debtor was significantly behind on his first mortgage and he had a second mortgage on the property in the amount of greater than $200,000.  The property value at the time of filing was below the total amount of the first mortgage.  We filed a ‘lien strip’ motion which allowed the second mortgage to be discharged as an unsecured debt after the five year plan payments were made.  In late 2017 we began the process of filing to value the second lien at $0 and discharge the debt.  We obtained the order removing the second lien and the debtor remained current on his first mortgage.  The property value recovered fully, but the debtor was able to remove over $200,000 in his second mortgage through the chapter 13 bankruptcy.