[melpumphrey]

In 2000, my Father signed for a car for me with me as the co-signer. In 2001 the car was repossesed. The debt has been sold a number of times, and most recently it was last year. This newest company took my fater to court, unfortunately, the court date was on the day his mother (my grandmother) passed away. Although he tried to appeal his absence due to her death. (She passed in her sleep at home, not in a hospital, so he was unable to leave the property that day). I don't believe he was ever given his "day in court" Since then, I have come to live with him, and once again racked myself into credit card debt, (in his name). Bad play on my part, I am currently going through a divorce and haven't been getting any child support, no work, etc. Most of the credit card use was un-avoidable. Not that there is any excuse. ANYWAY, we went last week to take a equity loan on the home , there is no mortgage, so we were all good to go. Come to find out, the new company owning the car debt, placed a judgement lien on the property. My father was not served with a notice of lien, it has the date 4/08 as the time it was placed on the home. What can we do to remove this lien, he had offered this company a settlement 11 months ago and they refused. My problem is that the payments and interest have gone up on these credit cards and I am in a hole that I can't get out of. Since the cards are in his name I can not file a banckrupcy or do debt consoldation. And I can not afford to keep these payments up, who knows if I'll ever see any child support, he has already made the statement that he's going to jail for it, not paying it. So HELP ME PLEASE, what can I do, I am consumed with guilt over "screwing" my dad. :(

[ScottGem]

There is no need to notify him of the lien. He was aware of the judgement and the fact is once they get the judgement, they can do anything they want to (within the law) to collect.

Even if you could claim he didn't have his day on court because of death in the family, I don't see how that would do any good. You admit that you own the debt, so he would lose and get the judgement anyway.

[farmgirlmo]

Can you not increase the home equity loan to include paying this off?

[melpumphrey]

My father insists that increasing the equity loan would make it too much :(
I don't know how to get this under control

[farmgirlmo]

Well, if you default on that CC debt, it could lead to more judgments and more liens.

If you can make the payments on the home equity loan, then the best bet would be to borrow enough to pay the lien off and the CC debt off and tell the father to take the CC back and either put them away and not use them or cut them up.

[ScottGem]

Are they denying you the loan? Since you aren't selling the property, just refinaincing the lien may not come into play.