I am so far behind on my Homeowner’s Association dues, and I’m going to be filing bankruptcy. Do I have to pay my HOA?
There are a lot of answers to this question. One of is, it depends on if they have a lien. A lot of Homeowner’s Associations can just file a piece of paper with the land records, and then they have a lien on your home, and getting rid of that lien might be a tricky thing to do.
But, if they haven’t done that, and you owe Homeowner’s Association dues, and there’s a significant arrearage before you file your bankruptcy, you will be able to discharge that arrearage in your bankruptcy, whether it’s Chapter 7 or Chapter 13.
Now, the bad news is that you are going to have to pay those Homeowner’s Association dues after you file your bankruptcy case, no ifs, no ands, no buts. You’re going to have to pay those as long as you are in title.
So, even if you got a condo and you’re surrendering the condo to the lender, and you have moved on to some other place, you’re going to be responsible for those Homeowner’s Association dues until that lender forecloses on the condo. That may affect some of the planning of your case.
