Could we potentially lose the house if my mom has run into some financial trouble and wants to file a Chapter 7?

The part of the house which is in your name won't be subject to her creditors in the bankruptcy (unless they have already filed liens on it). However, if the creditors (through the bankruptcy trustee) have the right to seize your mother's half of the house, then they could force the sale of the house and you'd only get your share of the proceeds. An important issue (at least in Ohio) is whether your mother lives in the house. Ohio has a $132,000 homestead exemption, meaning your mother equity is protected up to that $132,000 amount. For example: if the house is worth $400,000 and there is a $150,000 mortgage Your share and your mother's share are each worth $125,000 ($400,000 less $150,000 = $250,000 times 1/2 = $125,000). If your mother lives in the house, then she gets the $132,000 homestead exemption and has no funds at risk. If she doesn't live in the house, then there is no homestead exemption and her whole $125,000 is at risk and you better be planning on moving.

I doubt it. But avail yourself of an attorney's free consultation to be surethere are MANY homestead issues in bankruptcy.

Anything is possible. Possible is not probable, but to give you a more specific answer I would need to know whether your mother lives in the house with you and what amount of equity is in the property. You may want to go with your mother when she consults with a bankruptcy attorney.

Possibly, so under no circumstances should she file a chapter 7 bankruptcy without the assistance of an attorney. I can't answer your question with anything more than "possibly" because pertinent facts are missing. So please be sure to get a consultation with a bankruptcy attorney. When you consult a bankruptcy attorney we perform some important tasks in reviewing the potential case for possible issues. Besides determining whether the potential debtor qualifies for a discharge based on the Means Test calculations we also perform an asset exemption analysis to determine if all of the property of the debtor is exempt. Non-exempt property can be taken by the Trustee so one of the first questions I always ask is what property the potential client owns and compare it to available exemptions (there are several possible options here depending on category and value of the property and in the case of real estate - age & income of debtor could be a factor as well). If I see that there exists non-exempt property then I explain this and unless the person is okay with turning over that property to the Trustee (very rarely is that the best option) we discuss and compare other alternatives such as credit consolidation, settlement, ways of increasing income, doing nothing, and chapter 13 bankruptcy.

I would need a lot more information to answer the question. Most attorneys will charge a nominal sum for advice. Pay for the advice. You don't want to make a mistake here.

If there is equity in the house, it may not be totally exempted. This is a complicated matter; hire a bankruptcy attorney.

Yes, the paid for house is an asset of her estate and the equity in it, less a limited exemption, is subject to her creditor's claims.