Filing chapter 7 as a joint account holder with SSI

[sscott82]

Hey everybody,

I wanna file chapter 7 without an attorney because there's no way I can afford one and I have a few questions.

Im married but my wife will not be filing. We both are joint account holders on a checking account but I have SSI. Does SSI still count as income for bankruptcy purposes?

Also, we are joint account holders on a personal bank loan. I know I have to list that loan but how would she be affected if I file chapter 7 while being a joint account holder?

Thanks

[vhs]

Not sure about this one.

Whatever you do, just be totally transparent.

Not worth risking anything to save a few bucks, and possibly get jail time or lose more money or lose the ability to file.

[justbroke]

By definition, in the bankruptcy code, income from the Social Security programs are not counted as "current monthly income" (CMI) for purposes of calculating income. It doesn't mean that someone couldn't pledge to use that income in a Chapter 13 to fund such a bankruptcy. It just means that any OASDI (old age, survivor, and disability income under the SSA, SSI, SSDI programs) are not counted when performing the Means Test calculations.

Your bank account shouldn't be affected but if you're commingling money it could be difficult to determine what portion in the DDA (demand deposit account) comes from SSI. For the loan, the creditor will usually look to the non-filing co-signer to pay the debt... unless you're in a community property State and can leverage the hypothetical discharge.

What I would do before trying to file on my own, is schedule 3-5 free consultations with local bankruptcy attorneys and see if they say something similar to what I have written. If you own property (house, car, etc.) then I'm going to recommend filing with an attorney. Even if you didn't own such property, the commingled SSI funds could become an issue, albeit minor, that an attorney could easily handle.

Please know that your non-filing spouse's income will be included with your income. If you don't know how to properly leverage the bankruptcy code to use the "marital adjustment" then I would also recommend using an attorney.

Just some thoughts. Welcome to BKForum!

[vhs]

Could they simply liquidate the account, spilt the account in half?

and, then he can file?

[justbroke]

Could they simply liquidate the account, spilt the account in half?

and, then he can file?

Never move things around right before filing. It looks bad and you'll have more explaining.