Most Florida homeowners do not lose their house in bankruptcy. Florida’s homestead exemption protects an unlimited amount of home equity if you’ve owned the home for at least 1,215 days and it sits on no more than half an acre inside a city (160 acres elsewhere) — but you must stay current on your mortgage.

Florida Has the Strongest Homestead Protection in the Country

Florida’s homestead exemption comes from Article X, Section 4 of the Florida Constitution, and unlike most states it has no dollar cap. Whether your home has $50,000 of equity or $500,000, the exemption can shield all of it from the bankruptcy trustee and from most creditors.

There are only two built-in limits, and they’re about land, not value: the property can’t be larger than half an acre if it’s inside a municipality, or 160 acres if it’s outside one. The home must also be your primary residence — vacation homes and investment properties don’t qualify.

The 1,215-Day Ownership Rule

Federal bankruptcy law adds a timing requirement. To claim Florida’s unlimited exemption, you generally must have owned the home for at least 1,215 days (about 3 years and 4 months) before filing. If you bought your home more recently, your protected equity is capped — $214,000 for cases filed on or after April 1, 2025. Equity rolled over from a previous Florida home usually still counts toward the unlimited exemption, which is one of several details worth reviewing with an attorney before you file.

To use Florida’s exemptions at all, you also must have lived in Florida for at least two years before filing; otherwise another state’s rules may apply.

Chapter 7: Keeping the House Depends on Your Payments

In Chapter 7, the trustee can only sell assets with non-exempt value. If your home qualifies for the homestead exemption, the trustee can’t touch it — no matter how much equity you have.

The exemption does not, however, erase your mortgage. A mortgage is a secured debt, and the lender keeps its lien through bankruptcy. If you fall behind on payments, the lender can still foreclose after the case ends (or ask the court for permission during it). The practical rule: Chapter 7 wipes out unsecured debt like credit cards and medical bills, freeing up income so you can keep making the house payment.

Chapter 13: The Tool for Catching Up

If you’re already behind on your mortgage, Chapter 13 is usually the better path. Filing triggers the automatic stay, which immediately stops a pending foreclosure, and your repayment plan lets you spread the missed payments over three to five years while you keep making the regular monthly payment. As long as you complete the plan, you keep the house.

What Filing Costs

The court filing fee is $338 for Chapter 7 and $313 for Chapter 13 — the same in every federal bankruptcy court, including the Southern District of Florida, which serves Miami-Dade. Attorney’s fees vary with the complexity of your case; in Chapter 13, most of the fee can typically be paid through the plan itself.

Protecting Your Home in Miami-Dade County

Miami-Dade bankruptcy cases are filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida, with the Miami division at the C. Clyde Atkins U.S. Courthouse downtown. Miami’s high property values make Florida’s unlimited homestead exemption especially valuable here — homeowners in Kendall, Cutler Bay, or Westchester with six figures of equity can often protect every dollar of it. Arturo R. Alfonso P.A. has guided Miami-Dade homeowners through bankruptcy in English and Spanish for over 35 years. If you’ve been searching for a bankruptcy attorney near me because you’re worried about your home, a consultation can tell you exactly where your house stands before you file.

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