Section 222.22(2) of the Florida Statutes..
Section 222.22(2) of the Florida Statutes protects Education Savings, Health Savings, and Hurricane Savings accounts from attachment or Garnishment by Creditors.
Article I, Section 4
Article I, Section 4 of the Florida State Constitution has an Exemption for Personal Property, wherein Creditors cannot attach more than $1,000 worth of your Personal Property, such as furniture, electronics, and artwork.
Florida Has an Unlimited Homestead Exemption..
Florida has an unlimited Homestead Exemption, in terms of the Fair Market Value of the Homestead. Provided you property sits on less than one-half acre in a municipality of less than 160 acres if outside a municipality, then the property can have an unlimited value in Fair Market Value. However, if you lived in your Homestead for less than 1215 days before filing Bankruptcy, you are limited to using the Federal Exemption, as it applies to your Homestead property. As of the time of the Read More +
State Exemptions of Florida
In the State of Florida, if you file Bankruptcy, you will most likely use the State Exemptions of Florida, rather than the Federal Exemptions, or the Exemptions of any other State. There is an Exception to this Rule. To use the State Exemptions of Florida when filing Bankruptcy in Florida, you must be Domiciled in the State of Florida for at least 730 days before filing Bankruptcy. This is known as the 730 day rule. If you lived in more than one State in the Read More +
Homestead Exemption, the Final Word
In 1998, In re McFadyen, a Bankruptcy Court decision in the Middle District of Florida, held that a Federal Tax Lien is enforceable against Homestead property in the State of Florida. There are three exceptions to the Florida Homestead Exemption, in which a Creditor can force the sale of a Homestead, according to the Florida Supreme Court in the case of Havoco of America, Ltd v. Hill: Payment of taxes and assessments on the Homestead; Obligations contracted for the purchase, improvement or repair of the Read More +
Protection Against Creditors..
Most Florida Courts have held that in order to claim the Homestead Exemption as a protection against Creditors, the homeowner must reside in the property. In 1882 in Drucker v Rothstein, a Florida Court held that a piece of land that was never occupied by the Claimant, as a home or dwelling, and not capable of occupancy, does not qualify as a Homestead under the Constitution of the State of Florida. Furthermore, in the case of In Re. Estate of Ritter, another Florida Court Read More +
for A Debtor to Claim the Homestead Exemption..
In order for a Debtor to claim the Homestead Exemption in the State of Florida as a protection against his Creditors, he generally must be occupying the dwelling.
Chapter 222 Florida Statute
Chapter 222 is the Florida Statute, enacted by the Florida Legislature, that implements the Homestead Exemption protection, that is contained in the State Constitution of the State of Florida. Florida Statute 222.05 states: Any person owning and occupying any dwelling house, including a mobile home used as a residence, or modular home, on land not his or her own which he or she may lawfully possess, by leased of otherwise and claiming such house, mobile home, or modular home as his or her homestead, shall Read More +
Florida Law in Homesteads
In Southern Walls, Inc v. Stilwell Corp, the 5th District Court in Florida, in discussing the Florida Homestead Exemption, stated, “although a castle to one may be a shanty to another, the law does not so discriminate. Thus, regardless of whether one’s castle is a traditional home or a modest cottage, whether it is a rural farmhouse or a villa by the sea, whether it floats or sits on wheels, whether it is a condominium or a co-op, it should receive the same protection under Read More +
Homestead Exemptions Further Explained..
The Judge in Public Health v Lopez, when discussing the Florida Homestead Exemption, as a protection against Creditors, stated that the purpose of the Homestead Exemption is to promote the stability and welfare of the state by securing to the householder a home, so that the homeowner may live beyond the reach of financial misfortune.