wage garnishment for head of household?

[Julez]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

I lost my job, separated from my husband and then had my car repoed, they sold it, but the amount still owed is over 20,000. (long story short)

I am concerned that once I am able to find a job, they will be able to garnish my wages. I've read in my searching that there is some kind of head of household exemption in Florida, but honestly don't understand if I'm reading it correctly.

I am still married (car was only in my name) and my husband does work, but he moved out 6 months ago and pays child support. Am I now considered HOH?

I would just file bankruptcy and be done with it, but until I can find work, I can't even afford to do that and still feed my 4 children.

any advice would be greatly appreciated

[annajosie]

In Florida, if you are head of household, a judgement creditor cannot garnish your wages.

A word of advice; do NOT put your money in a checking account. A judgement creditor CAN freeze your bank account.

Good luck to you

[cosine]

Originally Posted by Julez

I would just file bankruptcy and be done with it, but until I can find work, I can't even afford to do that and still feed my 4 children.

You may qualify for the free legal assistance that is likely to be available in your area. These can be found online, in the phone book, and even through the free initial consultation many lawyers offer. Some are operated by community groups. Some are operated by local law schools. Hunt around.

[Julez]

Thanks so much for the replies and confirmation on the head of household exemption. That does ease my mind a little at a time when there's so much more for me to worry about....finding a job being the biggest.

OH...one more question. If I am able to find a job very soon that would pay me any kind of decent wage and I could then afford to send money to this collection agency, would they stop the court proceedings and accept whatever I could offer in monthly payments or if it happened after the court date, could/would they still accept money from me? I'm sure it varies greatly, but any input would be appreciated again.

[annajosie]

They could conceivably accept some sort of agreement with you. But keep in mind that at any time, they can turn around and still slap a judgement on you even if you are making payments. If that should happen, then all the monies you would have paid them are lost.

Your main concern is taking care of your children. You can bet that the company that trying to get money from you will NOT care whether you have food on the table for your 4 kids.

I would also suggest that you make a few phone calls and find out if you do qualify for free legal advice. If you do, take advantage of it.

Again, good luck to you.

[debtcollector`]

Anna -- rather than making a blanket statement that may not be accurate, provide the link to the state statute. Also, in Florida a JC can garnish a HOH wages. The debtor must file their exemptions and be ready if the JC opposes that exemption. If the debtor doesn't file the exemption properly, they can lose it.

The Florida Statute:
http://www.flsenate.gov/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=Ch0077/titl0077.htm&StatuteYear=2006&Title=-%3E2006-%3EChapter%2077

[annajosie]

Debt Collector,

I agree with you that the OP should assert her exemptions. That is why I suggested that she obtain free legal advice. They can point her in the right direction about how to do this.

Florida Statute 222.11 addresses the issue of wage garnishment and I did not see where a JC can garnish HOH earnings.

While it is quite possible that a JC would try to garnish her earnings, if she files for her exemptions, they will not be able to.

[bigun]

Hold off filing bk until, you have enough income to support yourself. You still have to pay basic living expenses post bk and if you can't cover those, bk is wasted.

[Drake01]

You should probably talk to a local attorney to see if you qualify for HOH protections against garnishments. However, they really first have to sue you and get a judgement. In this economy I'm not sure how likely it is they'd bother, and even if you don't qualify for HOH protections if it's a major issue bankruptcy is certainly an option here.

[Julez]

Thanks again for all the input. I really do appreciate it.
I absolutely hate the idea of filing bankruptcy, but would really have no choice if they would be able to garnish my wages (once I'm actually earning some again). There's just no realistic scenario that would allow me to pay back a $20,000 debt and still feed my children on what I'm sure will end up being a huge salary change from what I was used to.

I will wait for them to take me to court and then after knowing the judgement, I'll look into obtaining free (hopefully) legal aid.

My mother had my name on her bank account and yesterday we went to her bank and I had her take my name off of that and I will also close my own account (miserable as it is right now) once I get confirmation of a court date.

Thank you again for all the information