After 341. What should/shouldn't I do????

[BKlooker]

I am curious to know the answer to some of this too. I am going to be filing soon, and my attorney says i can whatever the same hill i want with my checking and savings accounts starting the day after I file, and no one can touch it (or would care to). My checking account is PNC, savings is HSBC, and i have never 'owed' either of them a dime, nor do i have lines of credit otherwise related to them in the form of credit cards, so my attorney says i shouldn't worry about either ceasing up on me (though i am inclined to get a new checking account the day after filing just to be safe).

I am nervous about starting to accrue savings prior to the 341 meeting, even though it's a full month away. I thought i read of some people in some districts having to bring an updated copy of their checking and savings statements to the 341 meeting once it's held. Any validity to this? I am sure it depends on the district and the individual trustee...

In theory, since BK is a snapshot in time, i don't think anything that happens the day after you file forward matters, unless you got bumped into a CH 13, and even then i think it's based on the original filing date, correct?

[free2breathe]

We did in fact have to provide the statements that covered the date of filing and one month after. Others have reported having to provide more. It just depends on the district and the trustee's instructions.

[tcreegan]

Hi BKlooker,

FYI: since BK is a snapshot in time this was the pre-BAPCPA outlook. Now the law has a 'totality of circumstances' clause that allows a wider look at your finances. Note: allows, not requires.

BUT...how this used is highly variable and your attorney probably knows the standard operating procedure for your trustee/court. When in doubt, trust the person you hired to protect you...

[debee]

Earnings from services performed by an individual debtor after the commencement of the case are not part of the "bankruptcy estate". So what you've made between the filing date and the 341 is yours. But I would make sure that everything going in/out of the account matches up with the expense claims made on J. That may be my paranoia talking, but that's what I'd do.

U.S.C. 541 (a)(6) ... the following items are part of the "bankruptcy estate": Proceeds, product, offspring, rents, or profits of or from property of the estate, except such as are earnings from services performed by an individual debtor after the commencement of the case.

[BKlooker]

tobee and debee, thanks....Gotcha...my lawyer says my trustee never requests anything past filing date, unless the suspect something is being hidden of course. My one concern was just with the holidays coming, there would of course be extra expenses going to Christmas presents where they would normally go to other things, but i have read others on here who filed around the same time and had to present the records and the trustee never flinched, so i am not going to worry about it, just keep receipts and give sensibly priced gifts this year.

[debee]

LadyinTheRed posted this on another thread and I thought it was great so am reposting it here. (She is advising someone filing a 13 but it's still relevant for ch7 filers):

"I have yet to read of a trustee checking a debtor's daily spending habits against the budget in their schedules. If you read the 341 section of the forum, I bet you won't find anyone who said the trustee asked how they spent cash recently. I kept my cash receipts just in case, but I never needed them. You will only need them if the trustee thinks an expense in your budget is too high and you have to prove what you actually spend. In the case of your dining out example, if the trustee thinks your food budget is too high, those receipts aren't likely to help.

Between now and your 341, do what you should do after your 341. Live within your budget, spend what you need to spend and save as much as you can."

[Fallonedward]

This is exactly what I'm doing but I would have done this no matter what, this is my budget and this is what I have to stick to. I will have no CC's to bail me out, just me and my budget to get me thru

Earnings from services performed by an individual debtor after the commencement of the case are not part of the "bankruptcy estate". So what you've made between the filing date and the 341 is yours. But I would make sure that everything going in/out of the account matches up with the expense claims made on J. That may be my paranoia talking, but that's what I'd do.

U.S.C. 541 (a)(6) ... the following items are part of the "bankruptcy estate": Proceeds, product, offspring, rents, or profits of or from property of the estate, except such as are earnings from services performed by an individual debtor after the commencement of the case.