If the official receiver decides you have assets, these will be sold as soon as possible.
Whether the property is sold or not by the official receiver will depend on the equity you have in it (this is also known as beneficial interest). To work this out, take away any money you owe on the property from the value of the property. So, if your mortgage is £100,000 on a property worth £150,000, you will have £50,000 equity. If your home is sold, this equity will go to the official receiver. Even if you’re not on the mortgage, you might be entitled to equity.
There are rules on how quickly your home can be sold, which take into consideration family and the number of people living in the property. If there is more than one person who owns the home, it is only the person that has gone bankrupt whose share of the equity goes to the official receiver. The official receiver has up to 3 years to sell your home, apply for possession of it, or come to an agreement with you about the equity.
If your equity is under £1000, or you are in negative equity, your case will be reviewed after 2 years and 3 months. After this period, depending on whether your situation has changed, you may be able to keep your home. If your equity is over £1000 but is still low, a third party may be able to buy the equity.
There are ways to work with the insolvency service to buy back the equity in your home – this is called a Property Conveyance Scheme, and you will need advice from a solicitor for this. You will still need to keep up your monthly mortgage payments where applicable.
If you rent your property, there may be a clause in your contract that you can be evicted if you go bankrupt, and if you have arrears your landlord may decide to take you to court. Check your tenancy agreement and consider the implications before filing for bankruptcy.