If considering bankruptcy, do not borrow money against your home to pay off or consolidate debt. The homestead exemption laws in Missouri and Kansas both protect some equity in a bankruptcy debtor’s house. As a general rule, incurring additional debt against a home often results in higher payments which may place consumers at risk of losing their homes at a later date. Consumers should consider resolving their financial difficulties through bankruptcy debt reorganization (chapter 13) or bankruptcy debt elimination (chapter 7). A debtor may be able to claim the equity in their home as exempt and emerge from bankruptcy with the equity in their home intact
