I Am Trying To Find Out What Items(house,car Etc) Are Exempt From Being Taken By Creditors Under Ga. Law.

Take a look: Judgments

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Originally Posted by captainlala

I Am Trying To Find Out What Items(house,car Etc) Are Exempt From Being Taken By Creditors Under Ga. Law.

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Looks to me like there is a $5,000 personal exemption (homestead exemption) and everything else is fair game for the creditor.

Of course, depending on the dollar amount of the Judgment sometimes seizing real property is more of a bother than it's worth and the creditor "simply" goes after wages and bank accounts.

(I assume you aren't talking about bankruptcy and are talking about judgments for debts?)

Old thread but for the benefit of those currently looking for advice I can contribute something. First of all, take advantage of the free consultation attorneys offer. You can learn a lot. I got over an hour with attorney. My understanding is that you have the same exemptions that you would have in a bankruptcy. $10K for a single person, $20K for a couple against the equity in your home. If you're way underwater in your home, I've heard they're not likely to put a lien on it, but, of course, they might. Just wouldn't make much sense. You get $3500 for one car. Even if you own three cars and they're worth a total of $1000, you can only exempt one of them. It's a good idea to have the car's title in your and your wife's names if the judgement is only against you (should be done pre-judgment). Find the value of your car(s) at NADA.com. Click "Consumer" at the top and follow the instructions. It will usually be the "Average Trade-in" value unless it's exceptionally clean. They have to hand the car over to auction by law so they won't usually take a car as it gets expensive for them. All depends on the value.$600 in the bank account. A certain amount for your household goods and personal stuff although I'm not sure of the figure. $5K? Sorry, not sure. Also, if the asset is not yours, then it must be exempt. For example, if you have a nice guitar in the home but it belongs to your son, it's exempt. They would have to prove that it's yours. Consult a lawyer on the details about that. You get an exemption for one firearm - I believe it's $500. Yes, I was surprised to hear that one too. Finally, some of the figures are fungible - if you don't take the full exemption in one area, the remainder can be applied elsewhere. This is what my bankruptcy lawyer told me and I am in GA. Again, keep searching the net - there are other "debtor boards" ou there. And do see a real attorney even if it's only for the free consultation.I saw two different ones for almost 3 hours free. Good luck.

Just wanted to add/ask - once you know what exemptions you have, how do you go about exempting them? I suppose, post-judgment, you need to file some kind of "exemption" affidavit with the court where the judgment was rendered. You'll probably receive an Interrogatory in which you have to provide info on all your assets, under oath, to the creditors/debt collectors. You have 30 days to do that. I'm not sure, but I would ask the Clerk of the Court or an attorney.