A credit or FICO score consists of 3 measurements: income to debt-service, liabilities to assets, and payment history. If an asset's ownership is shared, the debtor's portion will become part of their estate subject to further action by the Trustee. Attempting to transfer, hide, remove, or shift the ownership of assets before filing is presumptively fraudulent, can be undone by the Trustee, and can have criminal implications. Instead of taking that chance, consult a competent bankruptcy practitioner in your area to discuss acceptable ways minimize the effect of the co-ownership of these accounts.

Answer Applies to: Illinois
Replied: 12/22/2011

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Credit reporting companies will report the BK filing for 10 years. To prevent negative reporting on her reports she needs to keep the accounts with her name on them current.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 12/14/2011

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One spouse's bankruptcy does not affect the other spouse's credit unless the non-filing spouse allows the account to go into default.

Answer Applies to: Indiana
Replied: 12/14/2011

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Your wife should not be affected by your bankruptcy as long as she is paying her bills.

Answer Applies to: Illinois
Replied: 12/14/2011

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If your wife is a joint owner of the credit accounts, even if she has never used those credit accounts, she will remain liable for the balance. if the joint accounts are only debit accounts, I.e. bank accounts, she will be fine.

Answer Applies to: Florida
Replied: 12/13/2011

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Nothing you can do about that. If the accounts are current her credit should not be affected.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 12/13/2011

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If one spouse files bankruptcy that is not reported to the other spouse's credit report.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 12/13/2011

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There is nothing you can do. Credit reporting agencies are notoriously inaccurate. You don't say what you mean by account. Is it a bank account or a shared credit account? If you share debts she we remain responsible for the debts.

Answer Applies to: Michigan
Replied: 12/13/2011

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Since she is on the accounts with you, they would go after her, if only you filed bankruptcy.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 12/13/2011

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She will not be affected by your filing, but she will be liable for all debts that you are joint account holders on. Just because you file, does not mean she is no longer liable, so if she continues to make her payments, then her credit will not be affected.

Answer Applies to: New York
Replied: 12/13/2011

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That is an excellent question. If your file for individual bankruptcy, your wife's credit score would only be effected if you hold shared accounts with her such as joint credit cards and possibly a mortgage (and some other accounts). If she is an authorized user on any of your credit cards, the bankruptcy notation will be reflected on those accounts as well. If you consult with an attorney experienced in the nuances of credit reporting, you may be able to remove her from authorized accounts in order to reduce the impact of your bankruptcy filing from effecting her report. Simply put, if you do not hold joint accounts with her, and she is not an authorized user on any of your credit cards, then there should not be any impact on her report and score due to you filing for individual bankruptcy.

Answer Applies to: New York
Replied: 12/13/2011

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Nothing. If your wife is on the account along with you, the only thing that can be done is to keep paying the accounts. You can't leave them out of bankruptcy so it'll just be a matter of time.

Answer Applies to: Texas
Replied: 12/13/2011

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If you and your wife have joint accounts, your wife will still be responsible for the accounts because she is no filing for bankruptcy. Sometimes it is best to file together.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 12/13/2011

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She is still financially responsible for any debts you held jointly. All of those accounts should remain in good standing by her and she should be fine. If she has issues with her credit score, she can dispute any inaccurate reporting.

Answer Applies to: Florida
Replied: 12/13/2011

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She will need to pay her debt.

Answer Applies to: South Carolina
Replied: 12/12/2011

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This should not affect her if she assumes the debt.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 12/12/2011

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If you don't want to affect your wife by filing bankruptcy, then make sure she continues to make timely payments on all the joint debts.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 12/12/2011

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If your wife pays the debts which are also in her name then her credit score will not be affected by your bankruptcy. Her credit report will say that the debts are involved in a bankruptcy case but that should not affect her credit rating so long as payments are made timely. You do have to report all debts which you are obligated to pay even if someone else, such as your wife, is also obligated to pay.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 12/12/2011

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If she does not file bankruptcy, it cannot be reported against her credit as a bankruptcy. However, the payments on these account would have to be paid on time and paid in full to not affect her credit. If the payments are not paid on these credit cards or p[aid late, the lenders can report the delinquency in the payments on her credit.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 12/12/2011

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If you have joint bank accounts or joint debts, your wife will be affected and these must be reported. Do not get cute and try to hide them or close them before filing; that could land both of you in prison.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 12/12/2011

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Your wife shouldn't be affected by your bankruptcy; however, half of the funds in the joint account are considered yours and are part of the bankruptcy, however, depending on the amount, the funds may be exempt under the bankruptcy code.

Answer Applies to: New Jersey
Replied: 12/12/2011

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If you don't include your wife in your bankruptcy then her credit won't be affected.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 12/12/2011

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There is no way to guarantee that your wife's credit score will not be affected, however, normally any joint debts will remain valid against the non-filing spouse. Or in other words, unless your wife files for bankruptcy too, any joint debts will be owed by her alone after you declare bankruptcy. Remember your specific situation may vary.

Answer Applies to: Oklahoma
Replied: 12/12/2011

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