Filing bankruptcy will stay collections, repossession, and foreclosure, but it's a "stay of execution," not a pardon--the stay is temporary, not permanent.How long it will take is impossible to say in general, since it depends in large part on 1) how crowded are your local bankruptcy courts; 2) how aggressively do his creditors move to try to push the case along and set aside the stay; 3) how good everyone is (including your landlord) about filing their paperwork; and 4) how complex the case is. An estimate of one year is certainly plausible, but it's impossible to know for sure or in advance. Therefore, rather than count on this, you'd be well advised to start looking for a new living situation now, using whatever time you get to make the search not a despare or urgent one.