What happens if not enough disposal income.........

[catleg]

If you can get an attorney who also works as a chapter 7 panel trustee, I think I would lean in that direction.

[pamkev]

Our market analyzed is back and came in right around what we owe. I already have contacted the two attorneys we were thinking of using to see what they said, we heard back from the one who said chapter 7 all the way still waiting to hear from the second. It is a toss up which to use. One attorney that is his only practice the other is a partner in a law firm that some of there lawyers are trustee or have been past trustee. The one only has 8 years experience that is the one with the trustee's the other who is in practice by himself has over 20 years doing this so which do I choose.

Pam

[pamkev]

Saw 3 more lawyers today and and have narrowed in down to two both very good and both said it is very possible to file chapter 7. The only thing that will stop us is our home my hubby own the home before we got married and we never got around to adding my name to the title which means I can't claim the home exemptions. They both advised to get a market price of what our home is and go from there if the price comes into high we will have to do chapter 13 so does anyone know a good real estate person in Pa.

[LadyInTheRed]

Lady, PA does not have wildcard exemptions like other states. Not that I had a lot of extra cash at the time but we did have to cover the value of 2 additional "antique" cars in our payment, not that they are worth that much. The tt was very interested in them, but we have owned them for 20+ years, so he didn't pursue it.

I was confusing this thread with another by somebody from California. But, PA does allow you to use federal exemptions which allows up to $10,825 in unused homestead exemptions as a wildcard, plus an additional $1150 wildcard. Not as generous as CA, but not too bad.

[jange]

I have a $10,000 CD that I exempted and thought I was going to wait to save more cash since the CA Wildcard Exemption would allow me to exempt more than twice that since I had no home equity to exempt. But, I changed my mind and decided to file so that my Chap 13 would be over as soon as possible. If it weren't for the CD, I would have waited to build a cash cushion of at least a couple thousand dollars before filing.

Lady, PA does not have wildcard exemptions like other states. Not that I had a lot of extra cash at the time but we did have to cover the value of 2 additional "antique" cars in our payment, not that they are worth that much. The tt was very interested in them, but we have owned them for 20+ years, so he didn't pursue it.

karm43, I had 2 cell phones, house phone, internet and cable and the tt didn't have any issue with the house phone, internet or cable, he didn't like the $ for the cell phone and I lost some of the money for that, but made up for it in other areas like home maintenance, dry cleaning, etc. But I know we are not in the same district, so maybe your tt looks at it differently.

[karm43]

Do you have alot of secured debt? Such as car, house? Did you check the national standard for bankruptsy? They only allow so much. Plus if you have kids you get the higher, meaning your allowed to claim more for electric and such. For ex my cell phone bill is pretty high I do not have internet but they would only allow 50 dollars and kinda hoping they allow the cable and internet cause there not considered standard there luxury. So you have to figure out what is prob gonna be allowed.

[LadyInTheRed]

Pansyface is right. The certificate expires after 6 months. You can file the BK at anytime within 6 months after you take the course.

As far as waiting until you get a summons, that is up to you. The more exempt cash you have when you file, the easier your Chap 13 will be to get through. I have a $10,000 CD that I exempted and thought I was going to wait to save more cash since the CA Wildcard Exemption would allow me to exempt more than twice that since I had no home equity to exempt. But, I changed my mind and decided to file so that my Chap 13 would be over as soon as possible. If it weren't for the CD, I would have waited to build a cash cushion of at least a couple thousand dollars before filing.

[PANSYFACE]

As far as I understood it, you have 6 months to file before your certificate for the course expires. We had done the course but had to take it again because the certificates expired.

[pamkev]

Exactly one year.

Thank you

Question for all does it make sense to wait till you get summons before filing so you save as much as you can or file right away. We will not be able to file till Sept due to we just did our first counseling and it is my understanding we must wait 6 months after that to file is that right

[mountanddo]

Thanks how long was it before Capital One served noticed

Exactly one year.

[pamkev]

Thank you Lady In Red you have been a great help

[pamkev]

My chapter 13 is $100/month for 36 months. I couldn't file a 7 because I filed one a little more than 7 years ago. I wish I could of waited it out but Capital One ended up serving me with a summons. I couldn't afford to have my wages garnished which would of been about $575/month. Chapter 13 was the better alternative.

Thanks how long was it before Capital One served noticed

[mountanddo]

Btw, some here do manage to do a 13 paying 100 a month. If it comes down to that.

My chapter 13 is $100/month for 36 months. I couldn't file a 7 because I filed one a little more than 7 years ago. I wish I could of waited it out but Capital One ended up serving me with a summons. I couldn't afford to have my wages garnished which would of been about $575/month. Chapter 13 was the better alternative.

[LadyInTheRed]

My understanding is that if these unsecured debt payments can be used to fund a ch. 13 plan. Say you have a -$175 I/J DMI, but that includes $200/mo on medical bills and a $250/mo agreement to the IRS each month. That would actually be a $275 DMI for a plan payment.

To clarify: by medical payments I meant bills for prior service, not ongoing medical expenses.

If the trustee makes the payments to the IRS, which is a priority debt, that is how it would work. The only reason I would see the medical debt working that way is if the debt is secured. Otherwise, it is unsecured debt and is treated just like credit cards.

What is a DMI

Disposible monthly income.

I thought I could not count students loan in the plan

It depends on how they are treated in your local court. In some courts, student loans can be paid through your plan. In others, they would go into deferment during your Chap 13.

[pamkev]

Some people have a reason that they cannot do a ch. 7. Such as if they have done a ch. 7 less than 8 years ago. Or if they have non-exempt assets that they want to protect. Or save a home that is behind on payments. Those are the 3 I can think of, there are probably others.

If you have no reason to choose 13 over a 7, then it depends on your income and expenses. Some expenses you would NOT count: credit card payments, student loan payments, IRS/medical payments. You would not count these things because they would be part of your plan. You would want an accurate & reasonable budget for expenses. (Including 'emergencies' like home & car maintenance.) That is where working with a good attorney is very useful.

I thought I could not count students loan in the plan