What would a judge say about my expenses if i try BK?

[Anonymous]

I'm meeting with a lawyer in couple hours. He has worked with a family member of mine through a ch. 7 and she said he is great. A bit expensive, but will get the job done with no worries! I will follow up after the meeting to let you know how it goes. I'm crossing my fingers for ch. 7! Wish me luck...

[Anonymous]

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LTrain823 wrote:

I'm meeting with a lawyer in couple hours.

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If you get the chance, at least read this before you go.

http://kennethbrock.blogspot.com/2006/07/what-do-i-need-to-bring-to-my-attorney.html

[Anonymous]

So the meeting didnt go nearly as good as I expected.

A question I have about tax returns. I am expecting probably arount $7k in tax returns this year. The lawyer said that i should wait 90 days til after I cash that tax return check before I file BK and it should be fine. And then he told me that I have tell the trustee what I expect to use that tax refund with. What if I cashed it and put it in an IRA fund. Should I just kiss the tax return goodbye and file now?

He also said that I need to wait awhile because I have used my credit cards a lot in the past 6 months (almost $20,000). What should i do? Should i keep paying the creditors? He said that i have to pay them because it would be credit fraud if i used that much credit so soon to filing BK. The meeting didnt sound as good as I wanted. I dont think I will get ch. 7 which is what I hope to get. But now I'm looking at another 3-4 months of paying minimums. Any thoughts?

[granny031350]

it is true that using your credit cards right before filing will raise a lot of red flags.  And your lawyer knows your trustee well.  IRA's  are exempt.  If you let the trustee take your refund then your case would be open a long time.  With a chaper 13 you could file right away because you will be making a payment to the trustee.  Wonder if your attorney thinks you could start with a chapter 13 and convert later?  something to ponder.  But you do need to stop using your credit cards completely, no matter which direction you go.

[Anonymous]

i am planning on stopping completely using my credit cards. So are you saying that if I file a ch. 13 that i will be able to keep my tax refund? What does my ira have to do with anything? What does you mean "if" i let the trustee take the refund? Why would i want to give it? Sorry to sound so direct, i just became really confused all day.

[Anonymous]

Also, what is the worst that could happen if i have used my credit cards before i file bk? just curious...

[Anonymous]

Another big concern is about my family's income. Can anyone please tell me what steps the court takes to verify my families income? How will they know about my sisters? What if i never told them they even lived with me. I am not trying to break the law or anything but i am just trying to prepare myself for how and what they will be asking from me.

The other very complicated thing is about my parents. My parents are paying me $1000 for mortgage and for all utilities which equal about $1500 a month. The problem here is that my mother and father own a business that is losing money. They are not showing any income right now yet they still manage to give me the 1500 a month. Although the business is losing money they manage to pay some bills from what the business does do. The atty asked me to verify my mother and fathers income and I didnt know how to anser it. I have to claim this because after sittting with him and breaking down all the household expenses it came out to be a little over $5000 a month. My take home income is $3900 so he asked where the other $1100 came from and how I am managing to pay minimum payments on my CC's. Do i say that my parents only give me 1000 so it comes close to the expenses? Does this help get the ch.7? Again, i hate to sound like im trying to beat the system but my situation is def not a slam dunk situation to work with.

[Anonymous]

These all sound like very good questions for your lawyer.

AFAIK, IRAs are safe in many states and cannot be touched. And, I would try to keep minimum payments paid on time so as not to incur a bunch of lates or a CO.

Even if you couldn't qualify for a BK7, a BK13 is probably going to be a lot less painful than the promises of a DMP.

Nothing a DMP tells you carries the weight of law behind it. A gentleman's agreement made with someone who ain't a gentleman.

[granny031350]

Even though BK law is federal, every trustee and every district does their own thing. Some trustee's take the refund some do not.  Your attorney would let you know which kind of trustee you have.  My trustee gets my federal refund, not my state in my chapter 13. 

[Anonymous]

I am meeting with a ch. 13 lawyer in friday. The first lawyer i spoke with said he doesnt do chapter 13's so he referred me to someone else.

I'm really still unsure of what the goal is for me to have going into this. Is the goal to show as less disposable income as possible? I have no disposable income. Every month my expenses are more than what i make so i have to take money from my other business that i own half of with my sister. The store is losing money every month but i have no other source to take money from. I have already borrowed money from friends and family and that hope has definately gone away.

What happens if i have used a lot of credit cards in the past 90-120 days? I'll admit that I got a very irresponsible and stupid in the past few months. I took a lof of cash advances out of some of my credit cards and lost most of it at the casino. I know I know, please spare me the preach...sorry, ive heard it from a million and one people so far so i guess im just trying to get some guidance without someone telling what i shouldnt of done in the past when i already know what my mistakes are and will learn from it after this is all said and done.

If i owe many friend and family money will the trustee let me use the tax return check to pay them back? Does it make sense to wait until i get my check before i fil bk?

This has already been a nightmare going through my head and I have yet to already go through with this...

I spoke to someone yesterday who told me that his lawyer told him that they will not touch his house and then 6 months later the mortgage company forced him to forclose...that worries the hell out of me!!!