What did your trustee allow?

[alo]

SORRY - RE-POSTED IN CH 13 - NOT SURE HOW TO REMOVE FROM HERE!!

I have read a lot about allowable expenses (and even received some category lists from other forum members) but still have questions and would love more real world experience/information.

I am nervous about the incidentals that may come up in 5 years. And, it doesn't seem like the amount the IRS is enough for these or even for reasonable living expenses (I know there is a choice on where to allocate funds. I'm willing to forgo vacations but I'd like to be able to have a little something left over for say, Christmas and birthday presents). ;-)

This is what I see as the IRS breakdown for a family of 3 ($1227 total):
-Food $639
-Housekeeping Supplies $65
-Apparel and Services $209
-Personal Care Products and Services $63
-Miscellaneous $251

So, I have seen others post about "pet expenses" of around $100. Would that go under miscellaneous?
What about home maintenance expenses? Yearly tree limb trimming? Miscellaneous, too?

How about unforeseen items like if the water heater breaks or a window breaks?

Are folks seeing the ability to make a case for exceeding these monthly IRS expenses when they are homeowners? pet owners? Or, when anticipating medical/dental bills?

What has been kicked back as not being reasonable by the trustee or attorney? And, how much in expenses did your trustee finally allow?!? What about in these categories?

Subscriptions:
Medical/Dental:
Memberships:
Charity:
Holiday/Birthday:
Pet Care:
Entertainment:
Childcare:

One attorney told me if you legitimately spend it then write it in and it should be accepted. But, I think that may be why I am here (on the BK Forum) in the first place! Or at least one reason!


TIA

[btbeme]

A few things you can pretty much bank on...

First, what one Trustee allows can be very different that what another might question or disallow, at any given time on any given file, even in the same jurisdiction. Even on different days..

Second... Expenses are pretty easy to see. The Trustee lives in your area and has a good grasp at what it costs to live there. Also, they have antenna with great sensitivity for "fudging" the numbers. There are guidelines for your jurisdiction, and they are usually available online. If you plan to exceed those guidelines by very much, you should expect to be able to show why it is reasonable. Bottom line is, if you have an expense, it is a reasonable expense, and you can prove (if asked) that the expense has been reasonable and ongoing, it will likely receive less scrutiny.

Third. If your attorney says the Trustee will likely allow something, trust your attorney. But, if you are counting on your expenses being allowed so you can just barely squeeze under the limbo bar of the Means Test ... that is an easy place for your Trustee to start digging and flip you into a Ch 13.

These are basic guidelines. Your filing will get considered first as a sum of its parts. If something looks suspicious our outside the Trustee's guidelines (or instinct) it will get more scrutiny.

[LadyInTheRed]

SORRY - RE-POSTED IN CH 13 - NOT SURE HOW TO REMOVE FROM HERE!!

You can't remove a post. Next time, instead of reposting, please report the thread using the triangle with exclamation point near the bottom left and ask that it be moved to the correct forum.

[LadyInTheRed]

alo, you are looking at only the national standars for "food, clothing and Other Items".

You also need to look at the local standards for utilities, housing and transpertation and the federal standards for healthcare. You can find all of that information at: http://www.justice.gov/ust/eo/bapcpa...anstesting.htm.

My expenses pretty much tracked the standards and nothing was questioned by the trustee. If you are going to exceed the standards, you should be prepared to show evidence of those expenses.

I suggest you give your attorney a full list of all of your actual expenses. If you have been scrimping in some areas while trying to pay your debts, increase those amounts to what you think is reasonable. Your attorney will tell you if anything seems too high.

Emergencies should be consided as part of your budget. Water heaters fail and windows break. That's part of your non-mortgage housing expense. But, not all emergencies can be budgeted. If you can't handle the expenses incurred because of an emergency, you would call your attorney to discuss suspending payments and/or modifying your plan.