Planning My BK - Have Questions

[JEM]

In regards to the $ I put aside for the rental (first/last, security deposit, etc.), am I able to hold onto this $ or is it going to be taken if it is in my account when I file? I live in VA if that matters.

I feel like I need to have $ set aside for the rental in case I only have a short amount of time to get a place. But, I'm hoping I have 6 months or so in the house AFTER discharge to save $. Is this unrealistic?

THAT I am not sure of..we are keeping our house, so I haven't researched the aspect of letting the house go.

I do know that I've read here that are certain rules about claiming a housing expense on your schedules if you AREN'T keeping the house. I'm not sure if you need to be in a rental BEFORE you file in order to claim a housing/rental expense on your schedule J.

Hopefully someone with more knowledge in this area will chime in.

[AlmostAmos]

Still working on things & am scrounging $ up for an attorney. I have a few questions that we've thought of recently...

1) My salary is listed on my paystubs as $126k, as that is what I would make if I were to work 40hrs/week for a year. As I said above, I have been taking a significant amount of leave without pay due to my wife's medical problems. This has reduced my income by quite a bit. Is this going to cause a problem for us w/ the Trustee? My 6-month income will definitely be UNDER the median income for a family of 5 in VA.

2) We're not keeping our house as it is in need of expensive repairs and is WAY upside down. We can't afford it, or the many expenses that go with out. We're not able to include the amount that we were paying monthly on our expenses, correct? I'm planning to stay in the house as long as possible. Because of this, are we only going to be able to claim the housing allowance that is given for our jurisdiction? The reason I'm asking is b/c it is NOT feasible. Our rent will be something in the neighborhood of $1500/mo - the allowance in our county is $950...

-AA