Question Discharged 2/04/22 : No Closing as of 3/18/22 Help!!! What Next?

[Barbisi]

My husband may get a job offer soon. If so, we will need to sell the house ASAP.
As I understand it, no sale can take place until the case closes, even with an investor.
Our plan is to wait and see if the offer comes, then contact the attorney and ask him how we can go about getting the court and the trustee to allow the sale by granting permission. We would then forward the job offer and location (Wa.) to prove we have a legitimate need to sell the house, because we can't pay a $2500 mortgage and pay rent in another state where my husband works, and where we need to live.
Will the trustee have to reopen the case and will we have to deal with the discharged bk13 creditors?
Could all profits be seized by the court?
despritfreya is the only lawyer on these forums so far as I know, but justbroke is so knowledgeable, they alone may be able to give a basic answer and advise about going forward (.ie. how much would a request for trustee/ court permission cost, new lawyer fees, etc.)
We had no liens, late fees ,or arrears. The mortgage company acknowledged our discharge when they sent the escrow analysis, which raises our monthly cost by a little over $100, starting in May. We didn't reaffirm the mortgage either.
I am beginning to fear our case may never close -is this possible?
Could we have to pay this mortgage for many months or years to come?

[despritfreya]

Barbisi

You have your Chapter 13 Discharge. Has the Trustee filed his/her final accounting? If "yes", call the Court Clerk's office and politely ask for the case to be closed. Sometimes the Clerk misses the final accounting.

If the final accounting has not been filed, call your Trustee and ask when it will be filed. I do not believe the case can be closed without it.

Sometimes it just takes a phone call to get the ball rolling.

As to selling while the case is open, you may only need a letter from the Trustee. You would have to check with the title company. While a Motion to Sell is not really a big deal, a letter is quicker and since you have your Discharge, a title company may be fine with it.

Lastly, I am 99.9999% sure you will not have to deal with your creditors as it relates to keeping the equity in the home. You have your Discharge. That is not going to be taken away since you did not commit any fraud in obtaining it.

Des.

[Barbisi]

Thank you for your detailed reply , @despritfreya!
I tried to research how long the closing should take and the scant amount of info suggested it could take many, many months at least. There seems to be no time limit on how long the trustee can take to close the case. But since we have no complicating factors (liens, arrears, second mortgages, HELOCs, etc.) we shouldn't be denied a swift closing.
Since the attorney did say he would "let us know when the case closes", I think we will go ahead and contact him first. You never know if some unforeseen problem may have arisen to prevent this from 100% concluding. As I understand it, the debtor is still in a state of BK13 and will always remain so, until the court orders the case closed. That means the trustee still has 100% control of the debtor's finances ,despite the discharge.
We have earned our freedom and need to shake off the shackles of bankruptcy so we can begin to rebuild our lives and move on and start living again.

[Carmella]

Let us know what the lawyer says. Try not to sweat about it we often worry to much, me included!

[Zombie13]

Thank you @despritfreya.
NDC says: Completed - Pending FRA.
I participated in the final, Final, Final Final (and this time they mean it!) interview for this particular job. Man that process was intense. I am taking today off because I am just wiped out. Recruiter call, then phone screen, then 3 hour panel interview, then yesterday's call. Went to work yesterday after the call, hours seemed to just fly by. In the meantime, the same company wants to setup screens for 3 or more jobs. Yes, I am hedging my bets so I say, "sure". Never know what's gonna stick. Funny thing - I have software experience all over my resume, but 99% of the time I am turned down for those roles. Then the guy yesterday says, "your resume reads like a software engineer". Uh, yeah but that obviously doesn't matter so... Notably, I have received that type of feedback several times from hiring managers - this looks like a sw resume. Why then, am I always shot down? LOL That's ok.
Anyway::
if I do receive an offer letter and choose to accept, I will contact the attorney about our situation, and discuss our options. These may include directly contacting the trustee but, we've had good results when contacting the attorney in the past.
In the meantime, now that this megalodon-sized interview process is finally over with, we can return our attention to final pack, clean, and considering our options for the home sale. Prices continue to rise so, I reason, there may be a probability, even if small, the home value may rise enough to again consider selling on the open market, vs. an investor. The job offer, if made, will also be a factor: ie if we have enough resources to fix the place up and make it reasonably competitive (ie not a Denver Glam-Mansion), then maybe we should go for it. Provided we can comfortably pay all bills while the house is on the market and under contract.

[Carmella]

Zombie13 sounds like very positive things going on! My daughter is job hunting and it seems the process for her is much like yours which is totally different than my career in health care! I hope your BK gets completed ASAP.

[Zombie13]

Thank you Carmella ! I hope your daughter lands a job soon as well! And you're w/i 12 months of your plan too, so hang in there!

[Zombie13]

Got the verbal job offer yesterday, should be getting the documented version today.
Once we have that, I can start the conversation with the attorney.
Kinda hard to believe - I was a little stunned when I first spoke with the recruiter.
They asked, 'do you have a start date in mind?' Me: Um... uh... no.... uh, hm. We haven't thought that far ahead yet...'.
Reason being, although we were 99% confident an offer was pending, there was still that 1% of uncertainty.
Plus, I had more screening interviews for other jobs forthcoming, at the same company. Welp, looks like I can cancel those now!
Lots of planning to do.
We will need to talk to the relocation company, since we already packed 90% of our stuff. Recruiter said, they would have to unpack all that, then repack it. What In All The Name That Is <grawlix>? No. We'll sign the insurance waiver. Took us 4 months of carefully thought through packing and labeling strategy. Unpacking all this in a very short amount of time will create a huge mess of boxes, paper, bubble wrap, and tape; not to mention, risking losing small things in all that mess. I'm sure we can come to an agreement on this. But it does not involve, unpack and repack. No. Nada. Nunca. Nadie.
We don't want our stuff labeled: kitchen; office; bedroom. Why? Because that won't even happen now since the boxes would be wherever we can put them. Maybe they can put our boxes, in their boxes. Technically, they are still 'packing our stuff' that way. Good luck with untaping all that bubble wrap. Anyway; I'm still stunned this is actually working out.

[Barbisi]

Wow, it is so exciting to actually be planning our forever exit from Colorado!
I am 100% certain that had Bk13 never happened, we would have been long gone by now from here.
The bankruptcy forced us to stay here, because had we sold the house before the five years were up, the trustee would have been able to seize 100% of the profits, since we never had (and still don't have) any intention of reinvesting the proceeds in another house.
And of course, BK13 did happen, and nothing will ever make that life changing experience go completely away, particularly from our memory.
We will have to struggle for many years to re-establish decent credit, and we will never ever buy any house that needs to be remodeled and refurbished from top to bottom (i.e., everything but moving walls and replacing the main level wooden floors).
Thank you Carmella for all your empathetic remarks and constructive comments!
I think you would make a wonderful moderator and would be a fantastic addition to the forums, in the mold of sophieanne , after your BK13 is done, if you so choose! I'm sure justbroke would agree! You would bring a gentle feminine perspective to what can be very matter of fact .
Good luck to your daughter - may she find a desirable job with great pay and benefits!

[sophieanne]

Barbisi and Zombie13
Wow!!! And Congratulations..the beginning of your new start has arrived? Where is your new job? I’ve heard of the strict moving guidelines if it’s a military move..but not for a non military move. I would definitely ask about signing a waiver. So when are planning to start? I am soooo happy for both of you!!!

[Carmella]

Got the verbal job offer yesterday, should be getting the documented version today.
Once we have that, I can start the conversation with the attorney.
Kinda hard to believe - I was a little stunned when I first spoke with the recruiter.
They asked, 'do you have a start date in mind?' Me: Um... uh... no.... uh, hm. We haven't thought that far ahead yet...'.
Reason being, although we were 99% confident an offer was pending, there was still that 1% of uncertainty.
Plus, I had more screening interviews for other jobs forthcoming, at the same company. Welp, looks like I can cancel those now!
Lots of planning to do.
We will need to talk to the relocation company, since we already packed 90% of our stuff. Recruiter said, they would have to unpack all that, then repack it. What In All The Name That Is <grawlix>? No. We'll sign the insurance waiver. Took us 4 months of carefully thought through packing and labeling strategy. Unpacking all this in a very short amount of time will create a huge mess of boxes, paper, bubble wrap, and tape; not to mention, risking losing small things in all that mess. I'm sure we can come to an agreement on this. But it does not involve, unpack and repack. No. Nada. Nunca. Nadie.
We don't want our stuff labeled: kitchen; office; bedroom. Why? Because that won't even happen now since the boxes would be wherever we can put them. Maybe they can put our boxes, in their boxes. Technically, they are still 'packing our stuff' that way. Good luck with untaping all that bubble wrap. Anyway; I'm still stunned this is actually working out.

CONGRATS!! GMTA I thought the same exact thing they can put your box in a bigger box with some packing material so it doesn't jiggle around!

[Carmella]

Wow, it is so exciting to actually be planning our forever exit from Colorado!
I am 100% certain that had Bk13 never happened, we would have been long gone by now from here.
The bankruptcy forced us to stay here, because had we sold the house before the five years were up, the trustee would have been able to seize 100% of the profits, since we never had (and still don't have) any intention of reinvesting the proceeds in another house.
And of course, BK13 did happen, and nothing will ever make that life changing experience go completely away, particularly from our memory.
We will have to struggle for many years to re-establish decent credit, and we will never ever buy any house that needs to be remodeled and refurbished from top to bottom (i.e., everything but moving walls and replacing the main level wooden floors).
Thank you Carmella for all your empathetic remarks and constructive comments!
I think you would make a wonderful moderator and would be a fantastic addition to the forums, in the mold of sophieanne , after your BK13 is done, if you so choose! I'm sure justbroke would agree! You would bring a gentle feminine perspective to what can be very matter of fact .
Good luck to your daughter - may she find a desirable job with great pay and benefits!

Thanks for your kind words Barbisi

The job interviews and leads my daughter are getting are so interesting compared to what I am use to in health care! The 3-4 great leads she had fizzled out for various reasons, it's like a roller coaster. There's a new lead on the horizon we shall see where that goes. I am confident she will find something eventually.

You need to stick around the forum at least until you get settled in the new home so we can hear the happy ending of BK.

[Zombie13]

Carmella - LOL Zactly! We already did that too... packed em full as much as possible, plus paper to fill in the blanks.

[shipo]

Ugh, my wife and I went through an unplanned move in November and December which was a pain in the hind parts; I don't wish that on anybody.

[sophieanne]

Zombie13 ..Congratulations again! I wrote you both above. Are you going to keep me in suspense??? Where are you heading to?? I am so happy for the 2 of you!