Case study

How a former café owner eliminated tax debt and kept their family home

Bankruptcy
Initial debt
$187,610
Outcome
42.49% return
to creditors

Key results at a glance

Results that speak for themselves
$187,610
Unmanageable tax debt cleared
1
Family home retained
42%
Dividend returned to creditors

The challenge

Despite years of hard work building his business, the liquidation of Scott’s café left him with zero income and a massive tax burden that threatened his family’s future.

Business liquidation

The closure of his café completely eliminated Scott’s primary source of income, making debt repayment impossible.

Aggressive tax debt

The ATO pursued Scott personally for $187,610, an overwhelming sum for an unemployed 61-year-old approaching retirement.

Risk to family home

The sheer size of the debt put the family home he shared with his wife at severe risk of forced sale.

Zero income

With no wages coming in, traditional debt consolidation or manageable repayment plans were entirely off the table.

The solution

After reviewing Scott’s dire situation, we identified that a strategic bankruptcy – combined with a property refinance for his spouse – was the safest, most protective path forward.

Comprehensive financial assessment

We evaluated the massive ATO debt against Scott’s lack of income and the shared equity tied up in the family home.

Practical guidance

We provided a clear, non-judgemental overview of how bankruptcy can be utilised as a powerful legal tool for protection, rather than a punishment.

Tailored solutions

We facilitated the bankruptcy to eliminate Scott’s personal liability while strategically helping his non-bankrupt spouse refinance to buy out his share of the property.

Complete transparency

We ensured Scott and his wife understood the legalities of the spouse purchasing the bankrupt’s interest, ensuring the home remained safely in the family.

Why this approach worked

Getting started is easy and straightforward

Reason 1

Complete debt elimination

By filing for bankruptcy, the unmanageable $187,610 ATO debt was entirely addressed. This move saved Scott approximately $50,000, provided a 42.49% dividend return to creditors, and instantly removed the financial burden.

Reason 2

Asset protection

Instead of losing everything to the ATO, our strategy allowed Scott’s wife to refinance and legally purchase his interest in the property. This shielded their most valuable asset and kept a roof over their heads.

The result

Scott successfully navigated bankruptcy, experiencing immediate relief from aggressive ATO pursuit. The outcome eliminated a six-figure tax debt, saved the couple roughly $50,000, and most importantly, secured their family home for their retirement years.

Before
After
Improvement
Total tax debt
$187,610 owed to the ATO
$0 balance
Debt completely wiped out
Amount saved
Facing a massive, unpayable bill
~$50,000 permanently written off
Money legally saved
Family home
High risk of the ATO forcing a sale
Safely kept by Scott’s wife
Kept the home in the family
Everyday life
Unemployed and overwhelmed
Protected from the ATO
A fresh start with zero tax debt

Additional benefits

A comprehensive approach to your financial recovery

A structured, legally binding approach to resolving unmanageable business and personal tax debts

Immediate protection from further legal action, debt collectors, and aggressive ATO pursuit

Mental clarity and the removal of immense financial stress for the entire household

A secure, stable foundation to rebuild your retirement and future wealth with a clean slate

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What our customers are saying

I recieved amazing help from Sharon. She helped me combine all my debt and work out a repayment that worked best for me. As a stay at home mother of 2, struggling to find work while studying, this has been a massive relief off my shoulders

Kaelahanne
Verified

Had the best experience with Jordyn, she has been so helpful and so easy to deal with. She really made something that seemed so hard feel so easy. 10/10 recommend

Matthew
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I am extremely satisfied with the service Kylie provided. When I first came to you, I was struggling feeling frustrated, depressed and carrying so much stress. There were times during this past month that I felt like giving up, going through so much left me with little energy or drive to keep gathering documents and moving forward. But I am so deeply grateful Kylie was there every step of the way. She patiently guided me, walked me through every part of the process, and gave me 100% support exactly when I needed it most. Thanks to her care and dedication, I was finally able to get everything sorted and signed off today. I truly recommend this service to anyone needing help. Thank you so much, Kylie Bennison keep up the amazing work! Honestly, you deserve a gold medal for the difference you’ve made. I appreciate you more than words can say 🙏🏽✨

Laulauonuu
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In particular I want to single out Connie for being kind and empathetic during this process.

Sara
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Warranee was extremely helpful. Answered all my questions and made me feel at ease.

Kirsty
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Sharon was so helpful through the whole process and made it so easy.

Danielle
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Very easy to deal with. Went above and beyond to help my situation. Would highly recommend.

Sheryl Edwards
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Great communication,

Craig
Verified

They made me feel ok about making a mistake and gave me simple guidence to find a resaloution

Anonymous
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Google

Joseph has been awesome, professional and a great help to me during my time of financial distress. He made the impossible possible. Nothing is too troublesome for him. The team are friendly and helpful as well. Highly recommend Joseph.

Esther Sia
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Insanely supportive and helpful company. They’ve made the process super easy and fair, and have created a very manageable outcome. Mason and Ruth specifically in my case have both exceeded high levels of customer service.

Anonymous
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Google

I have had a really great experience with revive financial. They have been extremely supportive and my support has been Mason throughout the entire process and she has been fantastic

Julie Hill
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I really enjoyed my experience. Anette was incredibly helpful, friendly, and made everything easy to understand. They took the time to answer all my questions and provided excellent support throughout the process.

Chrystal
Verified

Fantastic service great help could not have done it without the whole team best choice i ever made thanks everyone that helped me achieve my debt free life

Ory
Verified

Understandingly considers real life circumstances and addresses personal situations with a target approach. Questions are well defined and realistic. Provides a great customer service with reliable and friendly staff. I highly recommend Revive Financial to anyone seeking financial assistance. Thanks

Walter
Verified

Connie has been so amazing to work with. She is so approachable and understanding and has made this process so smooth. She has helped above and beyond especially over the past 4 weeks with a traumatic experience I have been going through. I couldnt have done any of this without her support.

Michelle
Verified

Very easy process and very helpful customer service!

Jackson
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