When you surrender your home in bankruptcy, you are discharging the debt associated with your home.  This includes all debt associated with the home (property taxes, liens, mortgages, homeowner association fees, etc.).

Once you file bankruptcy and notice goes out, you should not be receiving any collection letters from your creditors.  If you are then you need to consult with your attorney as those creditors may be violating federal bankruptcy law.

An important thing to remember is that surrendering the house in bankruptcy does not remove your name from the title – which means you still show up as the record owner.

There are 3 main ways to get your name of the title of your home.

1.    Foreclosure.  This process allows for the legal transfer of title back to the creditor.

2.    Sale/Short-Sale.  When you sell your home, you execute a deed transferring your right, title and interest in the property to another person.

3.    Deed in Lieu.  This is an option that allows you to avoid foreclosure.  In essence, you sign over a warranty deed to your mortgage company and then you are done.

So, in summary, there may be some notices that you receive since your name is still on the property (property tax notices and city notices).  However, if you filed bankruptcy and surrendered the home you should not be receiving notices directly from your mortgage company, lienholders or your homeowner’s association.  This could be an indicator that the mortgage company or homeowners association is making a mistake – CONSULT with your attorney or any bankruptcy attorney to see if the letter constitutes a violation of the bankruptcy code.