6 month lookback for income

[needamiracle]

Because of medical reasons, my wife was advised by 2 physicians to stop working. She stopped working in October. She is being paid thru 11/30. Attorney has advised we wait the 6 months after receiving her last check to file as we should be under the median income requirements by $200 based on his experience with how much the % the income has increased each year previously. We've paid him the retainer and he says to forward the collection calls to his office. I'm not sure what he is telling them. Certain creditors have started closing accounts and I really am concerned we won't make it until June 1 (6 months after her last check) without legal action from some of them. Is there any chance the court would take into consideration for the 6 month look back that she is no longer employed? The attorney hasn't provided a definitive answer on this but he's been great with everything else so far. Are there things I can do to buy us more time? Make promises to the creditors that I know I can't keep? Delay court action if it arises?

[justbroke]

The Means Test is mechanical and doesn't look that you income changed. It only looks at what you earned in the 6 months preceding the filing of the case (period). Now, you could technically go in and plead your case (pun intended) but the mechanics of the test serve as a "bright-line" indicator of whether you are over or under-the-median (UTM) income. If you are UTM, then you have much less scrutiny on expenses and usually breeze through the formal process of insuring that you "qualify" for a Chapter 7 discharge.

Since you are represented, I'm sure your attorney knows exactly what they are doing. They will handle any and all call and do the worrying for you. If the attorney feels that immediate action, on one or more accounts, is necessary, I'm sure they will advise you and take appropriate action.

But, generally speaking, it's not a big deal to wait. Unless it's Discover or Best Buy, you're not going to be sued within 6 months of stopping payments. It takes 91+ days to just get to the part of having your account closed and written off. It usually takes at least another 90 days to get past collections and into the lawsuit stage. Not all creditors sue. All creditors will send to collections. Most collections threaten but never do much. The collection companies have systems where they can tell if the debtor is worth pursuing.