Rethinking this whole thing

[Michmom321]

We are not confirmed, but we had our 341. The plan is calling for every cent, lawyer is saying maybe we need two jobs to make the plan payment, and the second mortgage has filed an objection. Has anyone had success in calling the credit cards and/or second mortgage to make a settlement for smaller payments? I just feel so out of control right now. I am thinking of calling them to see if we can work something out, even for longer than 5 years, as long as I can get the payments to be managable. Am I allowed to call the creditors directly now that we have started the process. Thanks for any advice.

[klux]

Do you have a lot of secured debt you want to keep or something? Plan payment should be all your disposable income, so it should be every cent. A good laywer would normally be able to help you "pad" your expenses.

[Michmom321]

We wanted to keep the house, but if they do not strip the second mortgage then it is ot feasible. Since the mortgage is coming out of the plan payment (already being taken out) then how do we save for first and last month on a house? I have kids and this is going to be great upheaval. If I can get those payments down, we will at least feel in control of our own destiny. Is is doable to call the cc's and second mortgage and see if we can work something out? My lawyer is not all that helpful, even though he was so nice and friendly on our first visit.

[klux]

[QUOTE Is is doable to call the cc's and second mortgage and see if we can work something out? My lawyer is not all that helpful, even though he was so nice and friendly on our first visit.[/QUOTE]

Maybe you can call and see if they will do a modification for it. I was able to call my lender of my first mortgage and get them to do a loan modification for me. I had to have my attorney sign a paper saying I could talk to them, and once the modification was approved they filed a motion for relief from stay and modified their proof of claim to be ZERO. The filed the motion for relief from stay because they want to be able to have recorse if I default (I was ok with this), the order has't been entered for it yet though and I didn't object to it. I tried to work with my second mortage lender and they wouldn't speak to me because of the bankruptcy.....It could be worth a shot. Is your laywer going to file a motion to try and get the second lien stripped, are you upside down?

[Michmom321]

There is no equity to support even the first mortgage, let alone the second. But if I have to be on the hook for the difference from the short sale, then if I can get them to drop the amount on the second, I may not be too far behind. And then my whole paycheck does not get sent away. I even have to get a money order for the difference between my take home and the payment. So I need permission to talk to the second mortgage, how about the credit cards?

[keepmine]

Would you qualify for a Chapter 7 were you not tying to keep the house?

[klux]

So I need permission to talk to the second mortgage, how about the credit cards?

It's up to the creditors if they want to speak with you, technically they can not contact you but you can contact them. Remember, they may be real cautious on this because of the automatic stay. I'd suggest to just try and call them. Do you only have one income? I agree with the other poster, how about chapter 7 if you don't mind moving.

[Michmom321]

We make to much for a Chapter 7, and I have a lot of seniority that I do not want to give up in this day and age. Same for my husband, so quitting is not a good idea right now. We are stuck with a 13 or maybe we can work something out. The only secured loan is the 1st and 2nd mortgages, we want to keep the car, so left it out of the plan. What is the automatic stay on the cards? Just that they cannot talk to us?

[MajorMike]

Not to sound ignorant or dumb, but why do people take out 2nd mortgages when they have one already?
I had a home but we never took a 2nd mortgage and come to think of it, I don't even know why we would.

[rrockinggramma]

Have you talked to a lender about the FHA secured program or the Hope Now Program? they might be able to do something with trustee permission.

[Flamingo]

It's obvious you cannot afford the house. That is what the entire issue is. Since you already filed bankruptcy, the creditors will not work with you on anything. Keeping the house is going to be an extreme struggle for you unless you regroup and sit down and have a face to face hard talk with your attorney. If you can't handle the Plan payments your Plan will be dismissed if you can't pay, putting you back at step one of the whole process. You truly need to face reality here. You can always get another house but right now the entire scenario is crushing you.

[Michmom321]

Flamingo, I think you may be right. The last conversation with the lawyer was that if we pull the plug on the house, we will just have to pay more in the plan so we might as well keep the house. It is a mixed message. We meet with him on the 28th, we will see what he says. But he has not impressed me since the first meeting. rrockinggramma, where can we find out about the New Hope loans? In any case, I realized that even if I can strike a deal with the creditors, we will be on the hook for taxes and that will do us in anyway. I guess we just need to let this play out, but I need to have enough money set aside to get into another place. they are taking so much out, that will be hard. I have two kids, and I am now afraid of being homeless. Majormike, we were trying to do our best, but obviously it was our worst.

[keepmine]

You may want to consult another few lawyers about a Chapter 7. Many here have been above the median but, were able to file a Chapter 7.

[justplaintired]

Not to sound ignorant or dumb, but why do people take out 2nd mortgages when they have one already?
I had a home but we never took a 2nd mortgage and come to think of it, I don't even know why we would.

We took out a second mortgage to pay cc, thought that would keep us from having to Bk. If we knew then what we know now we wouldn't have done it. We should have filed BK then. So now we are back to no equity on our home, big mistake. Not sure why others have a second mortgage but that's our reason.

[Michmom321]

justplaintired, that is exactly our problem. We thought we could borrow our way out. Just another mistake in a series of mistakes. No matter what comes of this, at least in around 5 years we get a fresh start with a new perspective. I will do everything within my power to never be in this position again.