Why is this happening!!!!

[tryingtomakeit]

I'm still trying to figure out what to do here and it is all so overwhelming and then, as though my stomach isn't bothering me enough, our air conditioner just blew! I spent $600 to have a friend bring down the air handler from the attic and to acid wash it and do some other things around 4 months ago and now it's shot. It's 12 years old and I live in Florida so there is no way I can go without. I was thinking of filing BK early next year but probably can continue to rob peter to pay paul a little longer, heck I've done it this long, I can still hold out a little longer. Is this what happens? We just get in over our heads and try making it and praying for a miracle and then throw the towel in? I have enough available on my cc's to cover a new air conditioner, but worry how it will look if I file in 6 months or so....I get back a hefty tax return $5k+ that always goes towards bills so should be able to keep going for quite some time if I can get through the next couple months. If you have a $5k purchase like this within a year of BK, will they try saying I have to pay it back even if I wait as long as I can before filing? I have tried so hard to not let this happen and will finish my BA at the end of November, it's not looking good to get a better paying job but it could happen and then maybe I can get out of this mess on my own. But if I can't find another job and end up putting in an air conditioner and filing for BK in 6 months then what?

[JRScott]

I seem to remember someone else needing an air conditioner, it might of been southernbelle.

If they did challenge the AC as being abusive or a luxury item then you would still owe for the AC at the end of the BKs.

I would shop around and see if you can get the most affordable A/C possible. If possible get a used one or one on sale. This would cost less and possibly look better to the court and thus make it harder to prove it was an abuse.

Try to make 3 payments at least on the bill that is attached to the A/C

[TEW]

Get your AC fixed you are not suppose to use you CC for luxury items 60 to 90 days before filing you are talking about 6 months. That 5+ K you are getting. If you get it before you file HMMM got a 401K ?

[epiphany]

I don't know what the weather cycle is like in Florida but it is fall. Can you wait until your tax refund to get your air conditioner and then file?

Your tax refund is going to be fodder for the trustee and I would think that waiting to pay for it with that and not having to charge anything would allow you to file sooner and to have your tax refund spent (on a necessity) before the trustee could get his hands on it.

As far as the hope that you will get out of this mess on your own, my personal opinion as someone who has been there, done that, is that hope springs eternal. If the chances are only slim that you can dig out on your own, then, well, you are better off playing the odds. If you want to file early next year, you could do your taxes ASAP, buy your air conditioner, and still meet your goal. Run this by your lawyer.

I don't think robbing Peter to pay Paul is a good idea. Don't get me wrong, I did it for years. But the longer you do that, the worse it spirals out of control.

Good luck,
ep