Reaffirmation
Reaffirmation Agreement Defined An agreement by a chapter 7 debtor to continue paying a dischargeable debt after the bankruptcy, usually for the purpose of keeping collateral or mort-gaged property that would otherwise be subject to repossession.  The agreement is between the specific creditor, the debtor and is subject to the approval of the Trustee.	When considering reaffirming a debt, keep in mind that there is an 8-year spread requirement between Chapter 7 filings.  A discharge now will mean that a reaffirmed debt will be non-dischargeable for 8 years, until you are entitled to file again.
Trustee Approval/Denial of Reaffirmation of Certain Debt If reaffirmation of the specific debt(s) are important to your “fresh start” and are not prejudicial to other creditors, the trustee will likely approve it.  Be advised, however, that historically reaffirmation is an option if you have equity in the asset that will assist in starting over.  These days not a lot of people have equity in their homes, and in fact most filers are eager to get out from under mortgages that far exceed the value of the property, and monthly housing bills that exceed their ability to pay.  There is no guarantee as to what the trustee will do after applying a debt/value analysis.  If your mortgage is far enough over the value, reaffirmation may draw an objection, in which case there would be a reaffirmation hearing.  If the trustee opposes reaffirmation, then the bank may be motivated to offer better reaffirmation terms – i.e., a mortgage modification that makes keeping the house more attractive to the trustee.  Home lenders are not likely to reaffirm housing debt on better terms than the prior mortgage, but auto lenders often will do this.  Eventually home lenders may see the value in doing this as well..	If the Trustee rejects the reaffirmation, the creditors may be willing to modify the debt to make the reaffirmation more attractive to the Trustee.