What is Non-Exempt Property in a Garnishment?

If you owe money to a creditor, the creditor can sue you in court. If the creditor wins a court judgment, the creditor may obtain an order to garnish your wages or take valuable property to satisfy the judgment. The law limits what property the creditor can take and how much in wages the creditor can obtain.

Writ

A creditor can only enforce a judgment by obtaining a court order, such as a writ of execution, a writ of garnishment or a writ of attachment. To have the writ enforced, the creditor must send it to the sheriff or marshal in the same county as the property.

Wage Garnishment

To satisfy a court judgment, a creditor may only garnish up to 25 percent of the person's disposable income or the amount the person's wages exceed 30 times the minimum wage. If the wage garnishment is for child support, up to 60 percent of the person's wages are subject to garnishment.

Non-Exempt Property

Exemption laws protect some property from collection. A creditor can reach non-exempt property, like cash and checks from a business, wages, bank accounts, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, money held in a retirement account, and non-exempt equity in a car or house.

References

• Nolo: Everybody's Guide to Small Claims
• Nolo: If Your Wages are Garnished
• Nolo: Collect Your Court Judgment With a Wage Garnishment