Some days I'm the dog, but most days I'm the fire hydrant

[Granny]

Hi All,

I went to bed last night life was ok difficult but ok, when I go to bed tonight, my life will have been turned completely upside down.

Hubby has driven a truck for 22 years without a hitch and now, in the last 18 months he has had 3 accidents. Thankfully no one was hurt in any of them, and the last one was not his fault at all, but it will be the beginning to the end for us.

He was fired today. He delivered the load and then they told him to take it to the house. His dispatcher is p*ssed, he said hubby is the hardest worker he has, the other drivers are bums, don't want to work, etc, and hubby is always ready to go and he gets canned.

They will hold his last check for 45 days. This is the check that was to be sent to the trustee this month. We have 3500 in escrow with them in addition to this check and they are going to hold our funds for 45 days.

Lord only knows what will happen with the BK. This truck was 90% of our payment, but will they now want the same amount to give to the unsecureds and leave me with the unreasonable budget that was set up? That is if we can avoid getting dismissed.

I've made the house payment for this month, but what happens next month?

My whole world has come crashing down...I'm in shock, I'm numb and I can't think. I want to cry and I can't.

God help us!!!!

[reallynervous]

I'm so sorry, Granny. I am sure you are feeling quite lost right now.

I wish I knew more about the 13 process to share info on that with you. I don't, but I did want to send you some hugs and encouragement. We are getting ready to file and dh is now in a position where he may lose his job. We are waiting to see what happens. It is a very stressful time.

I am sure there must be a process in place for people who encounter severe changes in circumstances such as this. Did you use an attorney who you can call and ask what might happen? Usually I can handle things a little better when I know what I might be facing. It is often less worse than where my worries take me.

More hugs,
reallynervous

[lrprn]

He was fired today.

Oh Granny, how horrible for you and your family! After everything you've been through...now this to shoulder as well. I'm so sorry this is happening! How much can one family be asked to bear???

This truck was 90% of our payment, but will they now want the same amount to give to the unsecureds and leave me with the unreasonable budget that was set up? That is if we can avoid getting dismissed.

You need to call your lawyer immediately. Your circumstances have changed drastically and you can file an amended Ch 13 plan that reflects his job loss. Sorry but I can't remember - does your husband own the truck? Does he need to keep the truck to get another trucking job?

I've made the house payment for this month, but what happens next month?

Ask your lawyer about calling your mortgage company to ask about a month's leniency while your plan is amended. Hopefully they will want to work with you. Did you reaffirm your house loan?

My whole world has come crashing down...I'm in shock, I'm numb and I can't think. I want to cry and I can't.

Granny, how I wish I could do more than offer up as many virtual <hugs> as you need and listen whenever you need to talk. Please remember that we are here for you 24/7, and please let us know what your lawyer says, ok?

[Granny]

Oh Granny, how horrible for you and your family! After everything you've been through...now this to shoulder as well. I'm so sorry this is happening! How much can one family be asked to bear???

Actually, I've been through worse. Those are the exact words the mother said to her son who had just killed my daughter and her boyfriend, except she was talking about her family and her son who didn't have a scratch on him (not that I would have wanted him hurt too).

You need to call your lawyer immediately. Your circumstances have changed drastically and you can file an amended Ch 13 plan that reflects his job loss. Sorry but I can't remember - does your husband own the truck? Does he need to keep the truck to get another trucking job?

Ask your lawyer about calling your mortgage company to ask about a month's leniency while your plan is amended. Hopefully they will want to work with you. Did you reaffirm your house loan?

I'll call the attorney tomorrow so he can actually earn the money he hasn't been paid yet. Hubby will be home in about 45 minutes and we have a lot of talking to do tonight.

Yes, we own the truck and we're paying it through the BK. But as soon as the finance company gets wind that the ins. was canceled when he was terminated, they will repo, the BK motion to lift for that reason is already approved by the judge. He could move the truck to another company, but that delays the income for several weeks which will not be soon enough and it may not restart the ins soon enough. He could get a local job, but it doesn't pay as well.

And remember, I am up for a dismissal at the end of July for failure to confirm. They just mailed an amended plan last week to all of the creditors. Guess they get to do it again.

I never formally signed anything to reaffirm the mortgage, but the arrears were included in the plan.

Still numb, but but hoping I feel better when hubby gets home...the good thing is, at least he was in Texas when the fired him and he had enough fuel to get back home. He could have been on either coast and stuck.

Thinking about a chapter 7, but where would I live....my credit sucks now, so how could I rent something?

Too much to think about.

[arkienurse]

Oh Granny, my heart just fell to my toes when I read your post. don't have any advice, but ya'll will be in my thoughts and prayers.

[Granny]

I emailed the attorney and paralegal this morn. requesting info on how to surrender the truck and to inform them of the change in our situation. Am I just being anxious in expecting at least some sort of reply within the same day?

[Granny]

Oh Granny, my heart just fell to my toes when I read your post. don't have any advice, but ya'll will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Thanks arkienurse. It helps knowing that some one cares.

[lrprn]

I emailed the attorney and paralegal this morn. requesting info on how to surrender the truck and to inform them of the change in our situation. Am I just being anxious in expecting at least some sort of reply within the same day?

Granny, does your lawyer have a phone number? If he does, then call the office directly during business hours tomorrow rather than depending on email.

You have the email to prove you tried to contact him today in case it comes to that, so now it's time to flush him out by phone. This is too important to waste time hoping he's checking his email, especially with the non-responsive lawyer that you have.

[SinkingFast]

I can certainly sympathize with you Granny. We went thru this "loosing a job" nearly 3 years ago.

I am so sorry for you and your family. You've had such a tough time with your BK already and now this.

Hopefully, one door closed and another door to a brighter future will open for you!!

[Granny]

Granny, does your lawyer have a phone number? If he does, then call the office directly during business hours tomorrow rather than depending on email.

You have the email to prove you tried to contact him today in case it comes to that, so now it's time to flush him out by phone. This is too important to waste time hoping he's checking his email, especially with the non-responsive lawyer that you have.

I will call tomorrow. I knew he was at 341's today but I would have thought the paralegal could have at least responded.

But a thought occurred to me during dinner tonight...we have about 7K equity in the truck that we are surrendering. Wonder what the trustee will do about that. That is enough to bring my house current and pay some on the IRS or vice versa.

We have 3750 sitting in the trustee's hands right now. The judge signed the motion to lift the stay on 04/02 which included an ADP for 600.00 per month. The finance company has only received one of those payments.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

P.S. I was able to cry today, several times in fact, but hubby and I are already at each other's throats. If I was 20 years younger, I would just walk away from all of this and start over somewhere else. (venting over, thank you)

[lrprn]

P.S. I was able to cry today, several times in fact, but hubby and I are already at each other's throats. If I was 20 years younger, I would just walk away from all of this and start over somewhere else. (venting over, thank you)

Vent here anytime you need to, Granny - we're all friends here and god knows if anyone deserves to vent some, it's you. Weathering bad times together makes for strong bonds, and we're all here for you.

As far as the fighting goes, my DH and I fought pretty much full time for most of a year coming to grips with filing and the aftermath of filing, but as time passed and we each got a grip on the fact that at 61 and 55 we were essentially starting over financially, our love and caring for each other over 30 years together finally won out over our anger and frustration. I hope and pray the same will happen for you and your DH as well (but much faster than stubborn hubby and I! ). You are in my thoughts and prayers, and if you want to vent privately to another "old hen" here on the board, please IM me any time you want.

[Granny]

Update

After waiting more than 24 hours for a response, hubby called the attorney and was told flat out they would not talk to him and the paralegal would send me an email before she left for the day. Which of course, she didn't. I waited another reasonable 24 hours for the attorney or paralegal to respond, which of course, neither of them responded. So I called the trustee. Trustee's receptionist said she thought the trustee would be interested in the equity in the truck and I should call my attorney. I attempted that again, and hit another brick wall, as neither the attorney nor the paralegal was in. I emailed the attorney and paralegal again and told them that I had spoken to the trustee and told them what was said, and still I haven't heard from them.

So I need your opinions please.

We have a salesman coming to look at the truck tomorrow. We have 7-10k equity in this truck. He will give us an estimate of it's value and possibly make an offer to purchase it outright. This may be higher than what it would wholesale for, and we won't sell if it's not as much as the secured claim.

I realize that any proceeds we receive would have to be turned over to the trustee, but isn't that still in my best interest?

Secondly, I think once this truck thing is finally resolved, I'm gonna fire the second attorney and go pro se. All that is left to do is draw up another plan and since we are under the median, it shouldn't be that difficult. The worse that can happen is I get dismissed. I mentioned the Motion to Dismiss to the trustee's office and the fact that we might not be able to make our payment and she said I am up for dismissal for failure to confirm and that would happen before I am dismissed for not making payments. If I am dismissed for failure to confirm, it will be without prejudice. If I don't get dismissed, the only creditors left to deal with are Chase and their deadline for objections has passed and the IRS and I am certainly not afraid of them.

If all else fails, hubby can file a ch 13 to save the house and we start the process all over.

If I get dismissed and don't refile, I will get 1099's...big deal, the taxes that will be due on those are less than the attorney fees I am set up to pay.

What do you think?

[SinkingFast]

I have no clue if this is right or not, but,........

I think I would fire the SOB attny before you sell the truck. At least that way, he might not get dibs on any of the proceeds from the sale of the truck. ie, The remainder of his fee from your Plan Payment Pool.

With our luck, that's prolly not right. He'll probably get paid either way.

As far as going ProSe,.......... I don't know about that.

Sometimes you just get too whooped to think is all.

[Granny]

When I call the trustee tomorrow with the offer, I will start the conversation with the how do I fire the second attorney. And the reasons for doing so, like his failure to notify the court he had been hired, which I believe lead to the Motion of Dismiss. Fortunately, attorney #2 has only been paid 498.00, the trustee is sitting on a large chunk of change and he doesn't like it when people tell him the attorney won't return calls, I learned that the first time. The trustee had paid attorney #1 two payments of 1k each and he took one of them back. LOL

[lrprn]

So at least your trustee knows about the potential truck sale - that's a start. You will have to have official permission from him/her to sell the truck - that's likely why the suggestion to call your incompetent lawyer.

If you are thinking about doing your amended Ch 13 pro se (you are much braver than I!), what's the point of waiting to fire lawyer #2? Has he really helped you in any way up to now? Are there any other bk lawyers close by or in the nearest bigger TX city that you can talk with to get an hour or two of advice once you get rid of #2, Granny?

And please, please report both of your horrible bk lawyers to the Texas State Bar for misconduct in the practice of law and abandonment. Some states have funds available to help those who have been hurt legally by incompetent representation. Here's who to contact:
Steve Young
State Bar of Texas
PO Box 13007
Austin, TX 78711
P. 800-204-2222
P. 512-463-1463
F. 512-477-4607
(from http://www.nbtanet.org/public/discipline/index.shtml)