Bankruptcy

[rmo5095]

I have spent the last few days researching this forum and have found that I am probably a candidate for bankruptcy. The thought of that really doesn't bother me considering how bad things are right now. I would however appreciate any feedback on my situation.

Income: $1033 weekly after child support @ $157 weekly

car loan: $660 per month three months behind

payment to fiance for her house and child care: $500 weekly

rent for my house where I work :$500 a month

gas expense: $200 weekly

credit cards: cap one collections $400, household and orchard both @$700 twice the limit

cell phone bill for my old company :$1000

collections @nationwide $500

chex systems bank of NY :$500

mechanics lien on old bussiness: $10000

collections for ny state workers comp insurance: $4000

a couple of $300 pay day loans in collections

and on and on. god that was depressing.

MY question would be given that weekly income payment to fiance will not change is there anything on this list that couldn't be ahndled through BK? and do you think BK is a viable alternative. Any comments would be appreciated.

[sunrise]

You pay $500./week to your fiance for her house and her childcare?

[sunrise]

Welcome!!

$4000. is a decent take-home pay when your rent is only $500. mo. and car $660. mo.  What is crazy is the Fiance thing?  That seems to be what is killing you.  Can you maybe move in together? 

Call your OC's....make arrangements that you can afford and get it in writing!!  If anything is in collections....PFD them!!  The car.....get those arrangements made TODAY, it may not be here tomorrow!!  Especially if it is your only means of transportation to your job!!  How did your fiance survive before you?  $500. week seems steep! Can you work something else out? Does she know your situation?

You can also GW the lates on your cc's!

I would only consider bk as a last resort!!  It completely tanks a credit score....and stays on your report for 10 years!   

Keep paying that child support!!  First and foremost!!  Our children should always be a priority above anything...including new spouses/fiance's/relationships!  We put them here, we take care of them!!

Here is a start...but, it is only my opinion!  Others may offer more suggestions!!  BUT get the car dealt w/ now!!

Best of Luck, we are here for you!

[DillPickel]

I know where your at dude and it sucks, so I feel your pain.

IF you file, file ch13 NOT 7. By the time the ch13 and all the baddies are off your report (7 years), a Ch7 (10 years) would have still been showing.

BK wont necessarily help all the accounts that are in collections other than the one for $4,000, as they will most likely keep going after you since its a big amount. (Do some research on the site about collections on your credit report.)

I would agree with 'sunrise' that your monthly income seems high enough to recover from this. However, when I filed ch13, on paper I looked like I could have recovered also but once I got in that whirl wind spiral it was hard to make forward progress.

The lates on the car loan and credit cards will MURDER your credit score. I say address those ASAP even if you do file. Your no good to creditors if you aren't paying them $, they WILL work with you.

Regardless of your choice, the road will be bumpy. I went from driving a new SUV to driving a 87 Chevy van. Sacrifices will have to be made no matter what you decide.

[jdm72]

I agree w/ sunrise - most definitely the fiance situation is killing you monthly. That right there is 50% of your take home. If she's not working then child care should not be in the equation, and if she is then what's her financial situation like if you're having to contribute 2 grand a month just for her to survive? I would look at both of your overall finance snapshots before doing anything, obviously if you're going to get married you need to think of this from the ground up or you might be cleaning up another situation after filing BK for yourself.

As stated above, most definitely get the transportation resolved NOW before you're out of a ride to and from work. Best of luck with whatever you do.

[COCCO]

So your BR was discharged ? We dismissed ours...think thats worse ? And you CR score actually went up ?

[granny031350]

I think whether or not you file is a business decision.  And depending on the means testing, that will determine a chapter 7 or chapter 13.  I do not believe your fiance's expense (money you give to her) will calculate into your expenses.  That could swing you into a chapter 13 with disposable income.  With a good attorney and a good budget, a chapter 13 can be done.  Chapter 7's are quicker, over quicker.  But if you have tons of stuff in collections and chargeoffs, and judgments are coming down the pipe, state taxes etc,  I would go with bk.  Either way you are in pay off mode for the long haul and it can be just as damaging to your credit as a BK. 

[Noah_Bodie]

rmo5095 wrote:

I have spent the last few days researching this forum and have found that I am probably a candidate for bankruptcy.

...

is there anything on this list that couldn't be ahndled through BK? and do you think BK is a viable alternative.

---

First, if you haven't already, read through the "Sticky threads" at the top of this forum. Also read these.

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/fico/board/message?board.id=bankruptcy&thread.id=19

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/fico/board/message?board.id=bankruptcy&thread.id=20

Things that will still be there after BK: income, child support, money to fiance, rent, gas expenses. Don't forget food and utilities--unless you're hunting for meat, foraging or growing your own, and living off grid.

Anything you reaffirm, like the car loan, will still be there. However, if you're already 3 months behind, might be useful to look into whether you can sell it yourself and at least break even. If you know you're already upside down on the car loan, might be best to BK it and pay cash for a beater.

Any old bills, collections, and the like will be gone.

If the debt was business, like the cell for your old company, you might wanna talk with your BK lawyer about that. However, I suspect it too can be BKed.

On the chex systems entry with Bank of NY, is that an active collection?

Lien on an old business, again not sure. Talk to your lawyer.

Anytime you owe the gumint money, like workers comp, there's likely to be a minefield of laws you need to navigate. It may or may not be able to be BKed, but your lawyer will know.

I dont' recommend BK lightly, but there's always a sinking feeling that tells me, this person has no other choice.

Since your case would be a bit "exotic", you definitely wanna hire a lawyer to handle this. More than one person, here and in other forums, did a BK themselves and something got fouled up. A few actually had a lawyer that screwed something up. Don't just open the Yellow Pages and blindly pick. One of the stickied threads has info on selecting a lawyer.

If you need more info, feel free to PM me. I can point you to other BK resources elsewhere.