Daily Archives: October 26, 2012

First, dealing with a Maricopa County IRS Tax lien is not a legal matter.

But let’s back up and make sure of the circumstances surrounding your bankruptcy.  When a taxpayer files a bankruptcy and has met all the criteria for discharging taxes in a bankruptcy, the tax debt is considered removed.  However, if there was an IRS tax lien filed prior to the bankruptcy and the taxpayer owns a home with equity, the IRS tax lien is still attached against the home for the amount of the equity.  If the taxpayer sells the house before the statute of limitations expires, the IRS is entitled to that equity at the close of escrow.  If however, there is no equity in the home at the time of the bankruptcy, the taxpayer has the option of requesting that the tax lien be removed.

It is critical to get a certified appraisal on the home at the time the bankruptcy is discharged, so that the value of the home is provable if there is a dispute with the IRS.  Waiting several years and expecting the IRS to accept that you had no equity in the home may be difficult to prove.  If you want the Maricopa County IRS tax lien to be removed it is best to do it as soon as possible after the bankruptcy has discharged the IRS tax debt.

Scott Allen E.A. has the expertise to advise you on these matters.  He has seen many clients who were not advised by their Mesa AZ bankruptcy attorney that the lien would survive the bankruptcy and attach to their home.  Very few attorney bankruptcy clients were even advised what to do when they had no equity in their home after their bankruptcy was over.  If you have questions on this matter, contact Scott Allen E.A. in Mesa AZ for a free consultation at 480-926-9300.  There is still hope even if you had equity in your home, to prevent the IRS from using that equity against your IRS debt.