What Are the Bankruptcy Exemptions in My State?

Bankruptcy is a way to let debtors protect their property while affording them relief from creditors. In fact, many bankruptcy filers who file for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy can keep much of their property away from creditors. The type of property you can keep depends on your state’s exemption laws.

Some state laws offer stronger protections for individuals than others. Bankruptcy follows federal law, but bankruptcy exceptions fall under state law. To find out about the exempt and non-exempt assets in your state, talk to a local bankruptcy lawyer.

State Bankruptcy Exemptions

A bankruptcy exemption is just what it sounds like: Property that’s exempt from the claims of creditors.

Exempt property cannot be seized by a bankruptcy trustee in a liquidation/Chapter 7 case filing. After your bankruptcy court filing is over, you keep the exempt property so you can make a fresh start.

The federal Bankruptcy Code establishes a default set of exemptions, but states may create their own exemptions. States like Texas, Florida, and Nevada have generous exemption systems, including full homestead exemptions for primary real estate.

Other exemptions exist for:

• Motor vehicles
• Personal injury settlements
• Retirement accounts
• Alimony payments
• Social Security benefits
• Life insurance

“Texas is unique,” says Dorothy K. Lawrence, a bankruptcy attorney at Dorothy Butler Law Firm in Dripping Springs. “It’s an extremely debtor-friendly state. You can own a million-dollar home and, as long as it’s your homestead, you can keep it. You can drive $100,000 cars, as long as it’s one car per driver in a household. If you have money in the bank, they’re gonna get that, but your $75,000 Beemer you can keep.”

State or Federal Bankruptcy Exemptions

The majority of states require filers to use state exemption lists. In these states, residents cannot use federal bankruptcy exemptions.

Other states allow filers to select from state or federal exemptions. In these states, filers can choose either the federal or state list of exemptions. However, it must be one or the other. If a debtor opts for the state exemptions, they cannot cherry-pick individual exemptions off the federal list, and vice versa.

In debtor-friendly states, Lawrence says most clients opt for the state list, especially if they’re homeowners as opposed to renters. In many states, if you have cash on hand when you file bankruptcy, it’s irrelevant. You have some planning options in other states.

Check with a bankruptcy lawyer to understand how your state handles state and federal exemptions.

Homestead Exemptions

The homestead is only exempt if it is used as the debtor’s actual residence, as opposed to a rental property. However, if the property is sold, the debtor can continue to apply the homestead exemption to the proceeds from the sale for up to six months.

A few states provide an unlimited deduction for both a debtor’s homestead (primary residence). In contrast, the federal exemptions only protect a certain amount of equity — no more than $31,575, effective April 1, 2025.

Many states allow joint bankruptcy filers (spouses) to double the exemption claim for homesteads. Many states also increase the exemption for older bankruptcy filers or those with a disability.

Motor Vehicle Exemptions

One of the first questions Lawrence gets is, “Will I be able to keep my car?” The answer depends on your state law. In Texas, for example, so long as you don’t have multiple vehicles, the answer is yes. And even if you have multiple, you may be able to keep those, too. “You can keep one for every licensed driver in the household,” she says.

This includes a 16-year-old who doesn’t yet have a car or an 85-year-old grandparent in the house who chooses not to drive anymore. Even if a household member is not a licensed driver, an exemption may still apply if that person “relies on another person to operate the vehicle” for them.

Keep in mind that when we talk about “equity” in a motor vehicle or home, it reflects the present market value less than any money owed on a secured loan. So if you own a car that is worth $20,000 but have an outstanding loan of $15,000 on the vehicle, then your equity is only $5,000.

The motor vehicle exemption varies by state. Some states don’t have a vehicle exemption. Many states include a vehicle in the exemptions if the filer uses the vehicle for their employment. There are also states that increase the vehicle exemption for older filers or people with disabilities.

Wildcard Exemptions

Many states have a wildcard exemption for Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing. The wildcard category usually includes any other personal property the filer wants to keep that doesn’t fit into the other exemptions.

The wildcard limit varies by state, and some states have no wildcard exemption. Other states add additional exemptions for types of personal property, but don’t refer to them as a wildcard.

Bankruptcy Limits by State

The following table provides the state limits for homestead, motor vehicle, and wildcard exemptions.

State	Homestead Exemption Limit	Motor Vehicle	Wildcard	Statute
Alabama	$18,800	N/A	$9,400	Ala. Code § 6-10-2
Alaska	$72,900	$4,050	N/A	Alaska Stat. § 09.38.010
Arizona	$400,000	$15,000	N/A	Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-1101A
Arkansas	No limit	$1,200	$200	Ark. Code Ann. § 16-66-210
California	$361,076 to $722,507	$8,625	$1,950	Cal. Civ. Proc. Code §704.730
Colorado	$250,000 to 350,000	$15,000 to $25,000	N/A	Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-41-201
Connecticut	$250,000 ($500,000 married)	$7,000 to $14,000	$1,000	Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-352b
Delaware	$200,000	$25,000	$25,000	10 Del Code Ann. § 4914(c)(1)
Florida	No limit	$5,000	$1,000	Fla. Stat. Ann. § 222.01
Georgia	$21,500 ($43,000 married)	$5,000	$1,200	Georgia Code Ann. § 44-13-100
Hawaii	$20,000 to $30,000	$2,575	N/A	Hawaii Rev. Stat. § 651-92
Idaho	$175,000	$10,000	$800	Idaho Code § 55-1003
Illinois	$50,000 ($100,000 married)	$3,600	$4,000 to $8,000	I.L.C.S. § 5/12-901
Indiana	$22,750 ($45,500 married)	N/A	$12,100 to $24,200	Ind. Code Ann. § 34-55-10-2
Iowa	No limit	$7,000	$1,000	Iowa Code Ann. § 561.16
Kansas	No limit	$20,000	N/A	Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-2301
Kentucky	$5,000	$2,500	$1,000	Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 427.060
Louisiana	$35,000	$7,500	N/A	La. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 20:1
Maine	$80,000 ($160,000 married)	$10,000	$10,500	14 Me. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 4422
Maryland	$25,150 ($50,300 married)	N/A	$6,000	Md. Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code § 11-504
Massachusetts	$500,000	$7,500 to $15,000	$1,000	Mass. Gen. L. Ch. 188 § 1
Michigan	$46,125 to $69,200	$4,250	N/A	Mich. Comp. Laws Ann. § 600.5451
Minnesota	$510,000	$10,000	$1,500	Minn. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 510.02
Mississippi	$75,000	Personal property up to $10,000	Personal property up to $10,000	Miss. Code Ann. § 85-3-21
Missouri	$15,000	$3,000 to $6,000	$600	Mo. Ann. Stat. § 513.475
Montana	$409,450	$1,200	N/A	Mont. Code Ann. § 70-32-104
Nebraska	$120,000	N/A	$2,500	Neb. Rev. Stat. § 40-101
Nevada	$605,000	$15,000	$10,000	Nev. Rev. Stat. § 21.090
New Hampshire	$120,000	$7,500	N/A	N.H. Code Ann. § 480:1
New Jersey	No exemption	N/A	$1,000	N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:17-19
New Mexico	$150,000 ($300,000 married)	$4,000	$500	N.M. Stat. Ann. § 42-10-9
New York	$102,400 ($204,825 married)	$5,500	$1,325	N.Y. Civ. Prac. L. and R. § 5206
North Carolina	$35,000 ($70,000 married)	$3,500	$5,000	N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1C-1601
North Dakota	$100,000	$10,000	$7,500	N.D. Cent. Code § 47-18-01
Ohio	$182,625	$5,025	$1,675	Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 2329.66
Oklahoma	No limit	$7,500	N/A	31 Okla. St. Ann. § 2
Oregon	$150,000 ($300,000 married)	$10,000	$400	Or. Rev. Stat § 18.395
Pennsylvania	No exemption	N/A	$300	42 Pa.C.S. § 8123
Rhode Island	$500,000	$12,000	$6,400	R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-26-4.1
South Carolina	$76,125 ($152,250 married)	$7,600	$7,600	S.C. Code Ann. § 15-41-30(1)
South Dakota	No limit	N/A	$7,000	S.D. Cod. Laws § 43-45-3
Tennessee	$35,000 ($52,500 married)	N/A	$10,000	Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-301
Texas	No limit	One vehicle per driver	N/A	Tex. Const. Art. XVI, § 50
Utah	$52,400 ($104,800 married)	$3,000	N/A	Utah Code Ann. § 78B-5-503
Vermont	$125,000 ($250,000 married)	$2,500	$400	12 Vt. Stat. Ann. § 2740
Virginia	$50,000 ($100,000 married)	$10,000	$5,000	Va. Code Ann. § 34-4
Washington	Median county property value	$15,000	$10,000	Wash. Rev. Code § 6.13.030
Washington, D.C.	No limit	$2,575	$425	D.C. Code § 15-501(a)(14)
West Virginia	$25,000 ($50,000 married)	$7,500	$16,000	W. Va. Code § 38-10-4
Wisconsin	$75,000 ($150,000 married)	$4,000	N/A	Wisc. Stat. § 815.20
Wyoming	$100,000 ($200,000 married)	$5,000	N/A	Wy. Stat. Ann. § 1-20-101

Other Personal Property in Bankruptcy

In addition to a debtor’s homestead and motor vehicles, some states offer a wide range of additional “personal property” exemptions. Some of the more commonly used ones include:

• Livestock
• Musical instruments
• Household goods
• Family heirlooms
• Clothes used as “wearing apparel”
• Jewelry
• Firearms
• Tools of the trade or of a profession

The total personal property exemptions may not exceed a certain limit for a family or a single person.

All of these rules may appear to be exploitable loopholes for someone to burn cash quickly, then declare bankruptcy, but Lawrence says that’s certainly not advisable. “Trustees are going to want to see your bank statements, and do a lookback of three-to-six months, so you don’t want to pull $40,000 out of the bank and pay for a car,” she says.

You likewise don’t want to sell your million-dollar home a few months after the bankruptcy. If you do, those proceeds have to go toward a new homestead, or they’ll not be exempt by the trustee.

Find Legal Help for Debt Relief

In general, even generous bankruptcy exemption lists aren’t lenient enough for you to pull fast ones on your trustees. “There’s a reason celebrities move here,” Lawrence says. “You can be cash rich, put it into assets, and, so long as you live here for a while, you can declare bankruptcy and still live an OK life.”

If you have additional questions about how these Chapter 7 bankruptcy exemptions work, you should contact a qualified bankruptcy lawyer for legal advice.