Wisconsin residents may be aware that some financial transactions require assets to be kept as collateral. According to most loan agreements, the debtor is legally bound to repay the money that was borrowed within the prescribed amount of time. Otherwise, the creditors may take action against the defaulter and if the debtor’s assets have been kept as collateral, those assets may be forfeited, if the borrowed amount is not repaid on time. However, before taking any drastic action, such as asset forfeiture against the debtors, the creditors should first send a legal notice, and a repayment window of at least 15 days should be provided to the debtor.
Despite that, if the debtor fails to pay, the creditors may be able to forfeit the assets that were kept as collateral. Nonetheless, not all assets are forfeitable. The law in Wisconsin prevents forfeiture of household furniture, kitchen equipment and household appliances. Wedding rings and other personal items cannot be forfeited according to the law. In some cases, the debtor’s house may also be exempt from forfeiture provided that the valuation of the house after deducting the mortgage value is less than $15,000.
Not only are the assets kept as collateral, but the creditors may also forfeit other property and possessions if the amount due is high and may not be covered completely by the collateral assets. The debtor may lose cars, homes and some other valuable possessions. However, the law protects the debtors from losing everything that they own. There are federal laws that provide debt relief and help the debtors to make a fresh financial start. Debt relief may be obtained by filing bankruptcy under Chapter 7 or Chapter 128, and repayment of debt can be done through a three-year repayment plan.
Our law firm is experienced at handling cases related to asset forfeiture and we put in our best possible effort to protect the rights and assets of our clients. We try to explain every aspect of bankruptcy to our clients and guide them according to their current financial situation.
