How to Value an Asset

[moneynomore]

We moved to Florida 6 years ago. We have a 1994 (21') Sea Ray boat that has sat in our side yard for almost 6 years. It is in really bad shape. The trailer is not strong enough to transport the boat, the boat has rotted areas, is full of mold and needs mechanical repairs. A few years ago the bank charged off a balance of $11,500 and someone came up with a value of $8,000 - probably blue book value or something at the time. The boat has deteriorated probably 100% since then. A neighbor asked if we would sell it to them for $2,000. We are getting ready to file a Chapter 7. How does the court determine the value like the $3400 they came up with for the motorcycle? Is it possible they will allow the neighbor to approach the trustee to buy it? If so, could the neighbor approach the court immediately after we have our attorney file our case or do they have to wait for something particular?

Is it possible, since the debt has been charged off and the boat is in such bad shape they might just ignore it?

Are you saying that if you give your motorcycle to the court they will give you, on paper at least, $1000 toward the purchase of some of your other belongings?

I am sorry. I am new at this forum thing and I am overwhelmed by this whole experience. Our case is so complicated; I don't know how to ask some questions while avoiding boring people with too many details. I hope I did this right.

Thanks for letting me be a part of this forum.

moneynomore

[lrprn]

Welcome to BK Forum, moneynomore! I moved your post off the old 2005 thread to your own thread here - you'll get much better answers this way. It's against our forum rules to post to old threads that have been inactive more than a few months because old threads can contain bankruptcy information that has changed since those posts were made.

How does the court determine the value like the $3400 they came up with for the motorcycle? Is it possible they will allow the neighbor to approach the trustee to buy it? If so, could the neighbor approach the court immediately after we have our attorney file our case or do they have to wait for something particular?

Frankly your trustee is not going to be interested in an asset that is not sellable for an easy profit. Do you really want to keep a boat like this that is going to cost a great deal to refit anyway?

In the extremely unlikely case that your trustee is interested in your boat and you can't protect it with your FL exemptions, then your neighbor couldn't buy the boat from your trustee directly. The trustees use an existing setup to auction assets they seize. Your neighbor could go and bid like everyone else if they are really interested.

You'd be far better off to talk with several bk lawyers to see if you can sell the boat now and either protect the proceeds with your FL exemptions or spend the money for legitimate and reasonable living expenses before filing.

It would be a good idea for you to set up 3-4 free or low cost initial consultations with experienced bankruptcy lawyers in your area. You'll learn a lot about what's going to possible in your situation that way plus give you a chance to find a good lawyer you can work with to file.

Hang in there. Keep asking questions - we'll help you sort things out as best we can.

[moneynomore]

Thanks for the response. I didn't realize the age of the thread until after I sent it. I figured I must have wasted my time because no one would see it.

[tay666]

Actually, best case scenario would be.
The trustee has no interest in the boat and lets you keep it.
After you are discharged, you sell it to your neighbor for $2000.

[dragonnfly]

I would do that what they just said wait til your discharged and then sell it to the neighbor. They probally only want the motor and its worth a lot more then the boat.