Bankruptcy and gun ownership
A bill in congress would exempt firearms from claims by creditors in case of bankruptcy. So, I could convert some assets to expensive NFA weapons, file bankruptcy and profit. Ok, that wouldn’t work. My only debt is my house and you get to keep that. I could see someone trying something like that though.
However, I don’t inherently have a problem with the logic. After all, other items are exempted for legitimate reasons. Cars so you can travel, for instance. Gun so you can defend yourself doesn’t seem that out of line.
The Violence Policy Center and The Brady Campaign quickly marched lockstep with the talking point that someone going through bankruptcy is more likely to be stressed and start killing people. There’s no proof of that, they just say it.
Of course, I guess they’d both know a bit about the mindset of someone facing bankruptcy.
July 28th, 2010 at 9:57 am
I would favor something that allowed a one or two gun exemption up to a limt of say $1000. After all, you don’t need an NFA weapon to protect yourself and your house.
July 28th, 2010 at 10:12 am
The bill only exempts personal weapons. There is almost certainly a legal definition for what constitutes a personal item as opposed to an investment. Everything that keeps people from hiding assets in jewelry (which is also a protected asset) and other collections will certainly apply to guns.
July 28th, 2010 at 11:20 am
There is a limit of $1500. You’re not going to find too many class 3 weapons for that.
July 28th, 2010 at 11:22 am
Firearms are the ultimate long term investment item. A quality firearm is all but guaranteed to go up in value. Examples: Pre-64 Winchester 70 and S&W .44 Magnum(Pre-Model 29). Both guns were originally expensive and popular, both are still in production in some form, and both guns command a hefty premium over a new production model. Most of the time, you can sell the gun at a profit if it’s rare, and break even if it’s not.
The ultimate hedge investment against inflation is not Gold, it’s Lead.
July 28th, 2010 at 11:28 am
Note that bankruptcy law also incorporates state law of exemptions, so this can be done state by state as well.
July 28th, 2010 at 11:48 am
I can definitely see this as good and just if there’s a cap. If something ever happened and I had to leave my house with just what I could take for survival my truck would be one thing, and I’d throw some of my defensive arms in there. My WWII relics would just take up room.
As for the Brady Camp and VPC, we’ll let one of their drones reply:
“What’s a better example of sheep-like behavior than mindlessly repeating catchy one liners, regardless of their veracity?” -MikeB30200
July 28th, 2010 at 2:14 pm
Some state bankruptcy laws already exempt personal firearms.
Texas, for instance, allows you to keep one rifle, one shotgun, and one pistol. The rest get sold.
July 28th, 2010 at 4:17 pm
This is not unusual. Your retirement accounts are protected, and in most states your primary residence is. Florida has a personal exemption clause: you can shield $1000 of personal stuff along with your primary residence, or you can forget about the house and keep $4000 of personal stuff. In Central Florida, a home that you bought any time between 2002 and 2009 is likely worth less than half what you paid for it, so you will likely let the bank have the house and keep the guns.
The debtor is the one who places the value on his stuff, and yard sale prices are generally used.
Also, buying an NFA item would not likely help you, as the trustee looks at all transactions that occurred 1 year before you file. Buying a $10K item like a machine gun or a diamond ring a month before filing would get you in trouble.