Massachusettes must be different

[BOBBY1269]

Hello all,

i have been talking to a couple of people that recently went thru bk 13 in our state , believe it of not the attorney was able to get the 300.00 for entertainment ( 3 people ) and 350.00 for cigarettes !!!!

Maybe the laws in massachusetts are a little different but a recent post said 25 a month for entertainment - i spoke with my attorney about the smokes, entertainment.

He said that 350 for smokes is not uncommon and is allowed !!! - 300.00 for entertainment for ( 3 ) is ok at least in this district .

I asked him about a post that said 25.00 for entertainment and that was for 5 people - he said that was redicules and the plan was doomed to fail.

I spend 600.00 a month on child care and he said that is never questioned unless you ask for 1000.00 or more .

Your thoughts

bob.

[lillymarlene]

Hi Bob, Welcome to the forum. I agree, I think Massachusetts is a little different by looking at some of these posts. I filed chapter 13 last year and my recreation comes out to about $100 per person. I was also suprised that I was able to budget amounts for my cable, internet, cell phone and sundries. Don't know about cigarettes, though. :-) Then, probably different attorneys will give you different answers.

Good luck.

[BOBBY1269]

Hi ,

me and my wife are just now contemplating chapter 13 , quick capsule on our situation :

1st mortgage is current and is underwater by 40000.00
2nd mortgage 38000.00 bal - completely underwater

we have 6 credit cards 3 of which are in " charge off status " right now , the other 3 are 3 months behind all credit cards combined is combined is about $7000.00 ( not much )

our problem is we do not know weather to go chapter 13 and get the 2nd mortgage stripped along with credit cards or pay the 2nd mortgage and hope that we can get settlement with the credit cards.

Either way its a tough call - do we go chapter 13 and live under a strick budget ( we will have to pay almost 80% of the unsecurd debt ) or just pay the underwater 2 nd mortgage and negotiate a settle ment with credit card company on the charge off's

charge off stay on you credit for 7 years just like chapter 13 - i amjust looking for the best solution to my problem

i will need a car soon what better 3 charge offs or chapter 13 either way it is goimng to be hard to get a loan - what do you think ??

Thank you for you time

bob

[NoMoreCards]

Hi Bob! Welcome to the Forum.
Not knowing the details of your situation, I can't help but wonder if you would be better off getting a new car (to help with expenses) and possibly doing a Ch 7, and walking from your home. Assuming you could that is. It makes no sense to go through all this, to keep a home that is already 40K more than it is worth. With a CH 7, you could walk from the home when convenient by doing a "Pay & Stay" on the first. Odds are the second won't foreclose (however it is always a gamble that they could). Of course it all depends if this is a option for you.

Think of all your options, discuss them with your attorney and make a plan that will make the most of your fresh start.

[BOBBY1269]

hi ,

i tries to get a new car but i was denied a loan as i had a 3 charge off with balances - dealer said i had to be in a paid charge off status to get a loan and it would be at 18 % !!!!! - not sure if that is the way to go either - boy it is tough to make the right call here - we do not what to leave our home so walking away is out of the question - just havimg trouble with the heloc - i could keep paying the heloc and just try to pay the cc 's ( 7000.00 and rising ) but there are advantages to chapter 13 / the heloc is at 7.75% - chapter 13 -0% - but you loss the tax write off at the end of the year , but i still have 10 years to on the heloc - chapter 13 is interest free and 5 years shorter - seems like a no brainer - but being on a very strict budget scares the hell out of me - i am paying 500.00 on the heloc now so my estimated payment in chapter 13 is going to be 575.00 so maybe its worth a chapter 13

thoughts?

thanks
bob.

[momofthree]

a recent post said 25 a month for entertainment - i spoke with my attorney about the smokes, entertainment.

I really hope your attorney is wrong. We're nearly 2 years in and surviving just fine. It's all about discipline and having the willpower to tell yourself "no." We've even saved up a good portion of money, done several auto and home repairs, and still keeping our heads above water with no problems making our plan payment. As another poster often says "a chapter 13 is the best budget teacher in the world."

I do hope that you can get more wiggle room, but to say a plan is "doomed to fail" due to a small recreational budget is going a bit overboard. ;)