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of time to deal with the lawsuit. In California, however, that date is the date set for a case management conference provided that you respond to the lawsuit. So if you do not respond, that court date means nothing.

The question is: How much time do you have to file a response? Answer: 30 days from the time that you are served the summons. That’s right- only 30 days. If you don’t respond within 30 days, the creditor can move for a default judgment against you. That means you will lose- and you will owe the money that you are being sued for.

Once the creditor obtains a judgment against you, you are now fair game to the judgment creditor. What does that mean? Well, now that they have a judgment against you, they can now use all collection tactics at their disposal to get your money.

If you are working, the judgment creditor can garnish your wages (up to 25% of your net income every paycheck until paid in full). They can levy your bank account and wipe you out up to the judgment amount. If you have a home, the creditor can put a lien on your house. Additionally, the judgment earns the legal rate of 10% every year. In California, a judgment is good for 10 years and then it can be renewed for another 10 years after that. That means that the creditor can have up to 20 years to collect from you!

I have people consulting with me all the time who have old judgments from 10 years ago. The debt amount started small. But after adding legal fees, collections costs and the 10% interest accrued over the years, the debt amount has more than doubled. This is what happens when you ignore a judgment just because you think that the creditor has nothing to get from you at the moment. That may be true if you are currently unemployed and have no assets. But things change all the time. When your financial circumstances change for the better and you least expect it, that old judgment will usually come out of nowhere and will catch you by surprise. I see it happen all the time.

If a judgment lien has been placed on your home, you will not be able to sell your home without paying the judgment amount in full, plus all that interest that has been added. Just the other day, I got a call from someone who is trying to close escrow for a refinance but could not do so because a title search showed that there was an outstanding judgment for $18,000. This person has forgotten about it. He said that more than 8 years ago, he was sued after his car got repossessed. But he ignored the lawsuit and the judgment. Now, it has come back to haunt him. He needs the money badly from the refinance to take care of other financial needs but this judgment is stopping him from being able to complete the transaction.

If you’ve been sued by a creditor, it doesn’t make sense to ignore the lawsuit hoping it will just go away because it won’t. If you owe the debt and have no defense to the lawsuit, filing a response may also be pointless and can just be a huge waste of time and money on lawyer’s fees.

In some cases, it may be possible to negotiate a settlement with the creditor’s attorney. Payment can be made in a lump sum but usually for a reduced amount, or, if you don’t have the cash to do that, perhaps an installment agreement. If neither one is possible, perhaps it’s time to consider filing bankruptcy. If you’ve been sued, you have very little time to act and the sooner you do something about it, the better off you will be.

For more information and to schedule a free case analysis, please call Toll-Free 1-866- 477-7772. Let us evaluate your situation and recommend possible options. We have offices in Glendale, Cerritos and Valencia.

(None of the information herein is intended to give legal advice for any specific situation. Atty. Ray Bulaon has successfully helped over 5,000 clients in getting out of debt. For a free attorney evaluation of your situation, please call RJB Law Offices at TOLL FREE 1-866-477-7772).

2020 Housing Predictions

Continued on PAGe 8 US housing market predictions 2020 point towards a slowdown, the same is also starting to appear in the state’s housing market. Experts predict that several economic factors might cool California’s booming real estate market even further going into 2020. The California housing market kicked off 2019 with a weak start, but it’s been improving throughout the year according to the California Association of Realtors (C.A.R). And with mortgage interest rates trending downward, the California housing market predictions for the rest of 2019 are brighter than what most had initially anticipated. Here are several analyst based suggestions that will help you find the answers to where the California housing market is heading next year and if investing in California real estate 2020 is a smart move. Let’s get started.

1- California Home Prices Will Drop It’s well-known that house prices in the California real estate market have been following an upward trajectory since 2012. According to the California Association of Realtor’s chief economist and senior VP, Leslie Appleton-Young, the continuous shortage of homes for sale in California is what caused the rise in house prices over the last few years.

However, in the latest housing market forecast from C.A.R, Appleton-Young states that this trend has finally begun to take a toll on the California real estate market and price growth has been slow to modest in 2019. The chart below shows Zillow’s home value index for California and their house price forecast for 2020: Prices are likely to fall due to the continuous decline in home sales in many parts of the state.

2- California Affordability Issue Will Remain While home prices are predicted to drop, this doesn’t mean that California homes for sale are going to be affordable any time soon. In his California housing market forecast, Nickelsburg notes that despite sliding home prices, the affordability issue is still driving people out of the real estate market. C.A.R also reported that so far in 2019, only 32% of Californians were able to afford to buy a median-priced house. Though the desire for homeownership is strong, the homeownership rate in California is still lower than