Last updated October 21, 2026

Selling a House During Chapter 13 in Florida

Short answer: Yes. In Florida you can usually sell a house during a Chapter 13 plan, but the bankruptcy court must approve the sale before it closes. Your bankruptcy attorney files a motion to sell with the purchase agreement and a proposed order, and creditors normally get 21 days' notice. The listing side supplies proof the price is fair, including a written opinion of value prepared by hand.

In the Southern District of Florida, which covers Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie, the contract carries a court-approval contingency, and a dated log of every offer lets your attorney show the court that the accepted offer was the best one received.

Informational purposes only. This is not legal or tax advice and no attorney-client relationship is created by reading it. PBP Real Estate, LLC is a licensed Florida real estate brokerage (License CQ1064615), not a law firm. We list and sell real estate; we do not advise on debts, on whether or how to file, on exemptions or on the bankruptcy case itself. Ask your bankruptcy attorney about your situation.

Can I sell my house during Chapter 13 in Florida?

Usually yes, with the court's approval. Section 1303 of the Bankruptcy Code gives a Chapter 13 debtor the trustee's power to use, sell or lease property under section 363(b). A sale of your house is outside the ordinary course of your finances, so it needs notice to creditors and an order from the bankruptcy court. Many confirmed plans and confirmation orders say the same thing in their own words: no sale of real property without court approval.

People in a plan sell for ordinary reasons: a job in another city, a house that costs more to carry than the plan allows, a divorce, or a family decision to move. Whether a sale changes your plan payments, whether the proceeds go to the trustee, and whether your plan needs to be modified are questions only your bankruptcy attorney can answer for your case. What we can tell you is how the real estate side works so that it never becomes the reason the court waits.

What does the court need to see before it approves the sale?

A motion to sell, the signed contract and a proposed order, with the price shown to be fair. Local Rule 6004-1 of the Southern District of Florida requires the purchase agreement and a proposed order to be filed with the motion, and the motion must disclose the buyer, the price, the terms and whether the buyer is an insider, such as a relative. The Chapter 13 trustee reviews it, and creditors can object during the notice period.

You may read online that a sale motion needs a formal report on value. What an attorney usually wants from the listing side is simpler and more persuasive: proof the house was exposed to the market and that the accepted offer was the best one received. A written opinion of value from Gia Freer, with the comparable closings attached, plus a dated log of every offer, does that.

Which trustee and division handle my case?

All five counties we serve are in the Southern District of Florida. The division depends on where the case was filed, and the Chapter 13 trustee depends on the division.

Source: U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida (flsb.uscourts.gov) and the U.S. Trustee Program, Region 21 (justice.gov/ust), checked October 20, 2026. Chapter 7 trustees are assigned case by case from a panel; your notice of the meeting of creditors names yours.

How long does court approval add to the sale?

Plan on at least a month between a signed contract and a closing date the court allows. Creditors normally get 21 days' notice of a proposed sale under Rule 2002(a)(2), unless the court shortens the time. If no one objects, the court can enter the order; if someone does, a hearing is set. The order is then stayed for 14 days under Rule 6004(h) unless the court orders otherwise, and attorneys often ask for that stay to be waived.

The practical effect is on the contract. A buyer, the buyer's lender and the title company all need to know from the first showing that closing depends on a court order, and the closing date has to leave room for it. Cash buyers and buyers with flexible rate locks handle that best; a buyer whose loan approval expires in three weeks does not. We write that into the marketing plan before the first offer arrives.

What does a listing agent do differently on a bankruptcy sale?

Three things: confidentiality, documentation, and staying in the real estate lane.

• Confidentiality. Your reason for selling is confidential under section 475.278(2)(f), Florida Statutes. The listing never mentions the bankruptcy; where your attorney wants it, it says the sale is subject to court approval.
• Documentation. Every offer is logged with its date, price, terms and financing, including the ones that were turned down. That log is what lets your attorney tell the court the accepted offer was the best one available.
• A price the court will accept. Gia Freer prepares a written opinion of value by hand from current Beaches MLS closings, houses with houses and condos with condos. A price that is too high stalls the case; one that is too low invites an objection.
• The real estate lane. We do not prepare the motion, the proposed order or any court paper, and we do not advise on your plan. We coordinate with your attorney and the trustee's office so the contract and the court timeline match.
• A confidential start. The bankruptcy property information form asks for the chapter and your attorney, never Social Security or account numbers.

Gia and Grant earned the CDPE designation in 2012, and Gia holds the National Association of REALTORS® SFR certification for short sales and foreclosures. Court-supervised sales are familiar ground: we handle probate sales that run on the same kind of court timeline.

What happens to the money from the sale?

The order approving the sale says where it goes, and the title company follows it. At closing the mortgage, property taxes, any association balance and recorded liens are paid first, along with the costs of sale and the commission as approved by the court. What remains is paid as the order directs: some orders send proceeds to the Chapter 13 trustee for the plan, some allow an exempt amount to go to you, and some do both.

If the house is your Florida homestead, the treatment of the proceeds is a legal question with its own rules. Our bankruptcy home-sale hub explains the homestead basics, and selling after bankruptcy covers what Florida courts say about homestead sale proceeds. Ask your bankruptcy attorney how they apply to your case before you sign a contract.

Related

• Selling a house in a Florida bankruptcy: the hub
• The bankruptcy home sale, step by step
• Selling a house in Chapter 7: when the trustee sells
• Selling a house after your bankruptcy case closes
• For bankruptcy trustees and attorneys
• Short sales in South Florida

Published by Gia Freer, Broker of Record, PBP Real Estate, LLC · Florida broker license BK689801 · brokerage license CQ1064615. Last updated October 21, 2026.