Bankruptcy Estate?

[danaf]

Is the bankruptcy estate considered everything you have the day of filing and before? Or can it extend out to the 341 mtg?

I know there are certain things that do extend out, such as inheritances, windfalls - ect.

But what I'm mainly curious about are my paychecks. I wrote about this in another thread but I'm still confused about what to do.

I'm hoping to file in a 3 payday period. Obviously my goal is to keep my paycheck $ & the rebate $. If I file mid-way through the month with only 1 paycheck received, I can exempt $2500 according to NY exemptions (rebate & some paycheck $). But come the 341, I might have more $ than that on hand given it's a 3 payday month. However I would have received that money after the filing date.

Can anyone shed some light on how to proceed given the above information? If I file mid-month - do they look at the whole month anyway?

[lrprn]

Is the bankruptcy estate considered everything you have the day of filing and before? Or can it extend out to the 341 mtg?

Whether you file the first week of the month, the second, or the last, it doesn't change what you have to declare for your income on the Means Test and Schedules. The current bk law sets income determination as the last six FULL calendar months before the month you file.

For example, if you filed today, your six month lookback would be October 1 through March 31. If you filed April 25, April 28, or April 30, the lookback would still be October 1 through March 31. However, if you filed May 1, May 10, or May 30, then the lookback would be November 1 through April 30.

If I file mid-way through the month with only 1 paycheck received, I can exempt $2500 according to NY exemptions (rebate & some paycheck $). But come the 341, I might have more $ than that on hand given it's a 3 payday month. However I would have received that money after the filing date.

This has to do with cash on hand the day you file which matters a lot. Any cash on hand on filing day no matter where the date is in the month has to be protected by your NY state exemptions in order for you to keep it. In your case, filing when your account is below $2500 early in the month or even before receiving paycheck #1 probably makes the most sense. Do your best to anticipate and pay bills early in the cycle so they clear your account before filing and will keep the $$ in the account under the maximum allowed.

If you are worried about your extra May paychecks coming in after you file, current thought is that regular income that comes into your account *after*filing is already anticipated, so it doesn't have to be reported to the trustee.

It is a confusing to understand when the month of filing vs. the day of filing matters. Did this help sort things out?

[danaf]

Wow! Yes, your response helps me tremendously.

So should I replug the numbers into the means test dividing this extra paycheck by six months & also everything else (ie taxes, deductions ect) , add it into the mix, and see how it comes out? I'm pretty sure I'll be ok on this since my annual salary is below the median.

Just in case I wait until June to file.....My checking account would be at it's lowest at the end of this month or in June. In May, it would be at it's highest.

I could file by the end of this month if I had to. But my concern is the rebate is going into the checking account where I have my car loan and if I filed, I have no idea whether they'd take it. I'm not late or anything - it is just hard to predict what a CU will do. They will want me to reaffirm and I'm not planning on it. I plan to keep paying just not reaffirming. They might hold the $$$ hostage.