My "partner" (we've been together for 20 years, but have never legally married) is in debt up to his eyeballs. He owes close to $200,000 in credit card debt, $100,000 of which is penalties and interest!! A little over a year ago he quit-claimed his interest in our home to me that we own as joint tenants in common. To date, he has not filed bankruptcy and in the three years since he fell into arrears one judgement has been filed against him for approximately $6,500.
My questions are:
#1: Can my partner avoid bankruptcy with this kind of debt and is there a "time limit" on outstanding debt collections? In his best case scenario he would hope the credit card companies would settle with him for pennies on the dollar so he could pay them all off and start fresh!
#2: Can my partner's debt (my credit is A+, and the home mortgage is NOT involved in his debt) hurt me, my credit, or the almost $80,000 of equity we have in the home? Will we be able to sell the home while he's got this debt hanging over his head?
Thanks for much for this site and any answers you can provide!!

