Freaking out!!!

[schel]

I am freaking out!
I looked into filing in end of September and my husband was not on board with me. We have been using credit since then just to make ends meet. I looked at our balance on one of our cards and am freaking out. How could we have racked up that much on a card in 2 months? How can we even file now that we have been so careless?
What should we do.
Please give help and advice.
Schel

[yoyoma51]

I, like your husband, was not on-board with the idea when my wife brought it up.

Then after much research, she figured out how we could file Ch. 7, bypass the means test because of our low income for the last 6 months, keep two fairly nice (and paid for) cars PLUS our 33 year old house. If you plan well and live in a state that has good exemptions (or that allows to to use federal exemptions, as in our case), it REALLY isn't too bad.

Because we have little equity in our home, we are able to keep about $40k in assets which are paid for. All-in-all, not a bad deal. On top of it all, they can't touch your retirement savings (over and above your exempt assets, in most situations).

Because we have decent vehicles and a mortgage, we won't need GOOD credit for a while (although if we needed it, credit is available after bankruptcy).

PLEASE NOTE: I am not a lawyer (but I hired a good one, I think). Bankruptcy may or may not be a best scenario for you, it depends on your situation.

If you believe bankruptcy may be an option do the following immediately:

Contact a good bankruptcy attorney (or three);

If it appears bankruptcy is a good option, show your husband all the great information available (like these boards) and;

Encourage him to participate WITH YOU in at least talking to a lawyer.

Hope it works out!

[ameliabedilia]

We need a little more information. Is your issue that your husband does not want to file at all? If so, does he have a better plan.
How big is your debt?
How much did you charge recently?
How much do you guys make approx?

[schel]

We need a little more information. Is your issue that your husband does not want to file at all? If so, does he have a better plan.
How big is your debt?
How much did you charge recently?
How much do you guys make approx?

He thinks we can get out of this on our own. Reality, we can't.
Debt is at least 30-40,000
Recently charged 3500.00 and we still need tires on the car. Living expenses not anything else.
We make about 50,000 combined per year.
My main concern is the recent spending we have done.
I talked with an attourney first end of September and my DH said no at that time. My worry is did we jepordize our being able to file by recently charging things?
also...
What happens if we do file next year and with our taxes?
Schel

[yoyoma51]

I understand. Like your husband, I thought we could get out of it ourselves, too.

I was SO stupid.

Depending what you used your credit cards for, recent use may be an issue. Living expenses may be easier to pass off. You may want to wait a little while before filing and just stop paying.

Our lawyer told us that worst case scenario, he would work out a payment plan with the creditor ONLY for any charges that were too close to our filing date (not the ENTIRE amount owed), but he didn't believe this was going to be an issue anyway.

Also, depending on what state you're in, you may not qualify for the Means Test (which is a good thing) because of your income.

What state do you live in?

[lrprn]

He thinks we can get out of this on our own. Reality, we can't.

My husband had his head in the sand about bankruptcy too. After going to three lawyer visits with me and hearing objective, knowledgeable strangers say that we really had no choice but to file, he finally accepted the inevitable.

Was your husband the financial head of your house? Mine was and now 18 months after we filed, he says that he was ashamed to be seen as a failure and that's why he couldn't face bankruptcy. Now he says he knows it was really the only choice and has no regrets. Hopefully your husband will wake up and accept the inevitable as well.

The recent charges on your credit cards sound like they are for nnormal living expenses, so that lessens the hit somewhat. Still most lawyers will recommend that you have no charges on your cards for at least 90 days before you file.

Once you convince hubby you have to file, then you can stop paying your unsecured credit cards and loans and use that cash to live on instead.

What happens if we do file next year and with our taxes?

If you are asking if your trustee will take any refund you have coming for this year, there's no way to predict that. Depends on the trustee and the customs of your local court.

If you will owe taxes and are asking if you have to include the taxes in your bankruptcy filing, the answer is yes. Most folks owing taxes when they file set up a payment plan with the IRS. Most of the time taxes can't be discharged in bankruptcy except under some unusual circumstances.

Hope this helps! Keep asking questions - we'll help you sort things out as best we can.

[genseeker]

My hubby origiinally did not want to file BK. I finally told him that I was filing whether he did or not. I sat down and started filing in blank forms, listing debts/assets/income/expenses/etc. Basically I printed blank forms from my local BK Court website and started filing in information, not worrying if it was alphabetical or not. I included all our joint stuff and on seperate pages, listed anything in just his name. Then I sat down one night and told him we need to talk about our finances and you need to listen to me. Then I went over our joint debts, including outstanding medical bills/collections/judgments. When I gave him the total from each section, like unsecured debt (most debt) and when he heard how much we actually owed, it was a real shocker. Very little of what I listed was past SOL and once I added in all our joint and individual debts, we had about $150K, with $20K as student loan that he understands is not discharged.

*Sometimes we need to lay things out very simply for the other side*

[PaKettle]

I am freaking out!
I looked into filing in end of September and my husband was not on board with me. We have been using credit since then just to make ends meet. I looked at our balance on one of our cards and am freaking out. How could we have racked up that much on a card in 2 months? How can we even file now that we have been so careless?
What should we do.
Please give help and advice.
Schel

You've both got to get together on this if you're going to file joint bankruptcy.

SHow him how much you owe altogether and how long it will take to pay back at the current rate and how much interest you will pay vs. being nearly debt-free and starting over if you file.

Once you get him to at least consider it, get with a couple attorneys, or three. Most will give free consults, some in person, some by phone.

That will give you an idea of how sure your case is for a Ch. 7 or if you'd have to file Ch. 13.

If you are going to file you have to stop using your cards for at least 3 months before you file. I mean, one or two small charges is no big deal, but no large debts for the 3 months before you file.

Good luck.