Can I leave debts out of my case if I want to?

No. But that does not mean that you will lose the property. For example, mortgages are listed Chapter 13, but unless you choose to surrender the property, you would continue to pay the mortgage directly as those payments come due in the future. In Chapter 13, you also list debts that you can’t discharge without payment, such as student loans (see below).

In Chapter 13, you also list all co-signed debts (see below), whether your name is listed first or second. Then, in your plan, you indicate whether the co-signer is going to pay the debt or whether you are.

In Chapter 7, you would also list the mortgage and all other secured debt, regardless of your “intentions” with regard to what you want to keep. If you are “reaffirming”a secured debt, that is, keeping the property and continuing to pay the debt on it, then you list the debt in one place, and indicate your intention to keep the property in another place. Alternatively, you may list the debt and indicate that you intend to surrender the property and discharge the debt without payment.