Monday, June 23, 2003

What Can Be Garnished for Debt?

When a creditor gets a judgment from a court, the creditor can put through a garnishment order against certain assets, to collect the past due debt. A creditor can keep a garnishment in place until a debt is paid in full.

Size

    Your wages from your job can be garnished by a creditor. The amount of the garnishment is usually 25 percent of your disposable income on a weekly basis.

Considerations

    A creditor also can garnish your bank account. When a bank account is garnished, you can deposit money but you cannot withdraw money.

Benefits

    If the money in your bank account is from Social Security, unemployment compensation, welfare, child support or Veterans Administration benefits, your account is exempt from bank garnishment.

Prevention/Solution

    If a creditor freezes your bank account and you think it is exempt from garnishment, you need to visit the court where the judgment was rendered and fill out an exemption form. You might have to attend a hearing.

Warning

    Your vehicle also can be garnished. In order for a creditor to garnish or repossess your automobile, it has to have at least a set amount of equity; the amount varies from state to state. According to Lawyers.com, the value of the car minus the loan amount determines the equity.

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