Going to File 13 with questions..

[WantOuttaDebt]

I had a consultation with a lawyer today and have been tossing around the whole idea.

I reside in Ohio and I am currently past due on my mortgage 4 months now as of the 1st. I have a letter that they are going to accellerate forclosure if I don't pay by the 6th. I called them and they gave me numbers for a payment plan but there's no way I can do that so I scheduled my consultation that I had this morning.

I went in straightforwardly telling him I want to do whatever I have to do to save my house. I have 2 youngs kids and we HAVE TO HAVE A HOUSE. If it wasn't for them I would tell them to take it and get up and leave or try and sell it but we have nowhere to go.

Currently I don't have that much debt but what I do have is never ending. I get one thing caught up to prevent disconnection and I get behind in something else. I have a judgement against me that they threaten to garnish wages for also. I am behind in my utilities also. I am going to go through my credit report that I just received for any collection accounts and get all the information gathered so I can fill out the paperwork. I have to get them their retainer and then the rest so I can actually pay them the rest soon to accellerate the process.

I have a question though. My fiance's father has helped us out way too much so he has a lot of credit card debt now. Can he add me to those accounts as an authorized user so I can put some of that on my Ch. 13? I have appologized so many times to him. He can't help it that his son inherited his mom's careless spending.

We both have good incomes but we can't seem to get things going in the right direction. I tried to limit my fiance's spending but he didn't go by what we originally set so that didn't work.

Can anyone offer any advice? I am tired of having this neverending cycle. It really is wearing on me.

[liz417]

Hi there and welcome to this board WOD,

You are taking the right steps in fixing your financial mess and getting a consultation with an attorney (although, I would recommend that you see at least 3 more attorneys). You say you want to save the house, how much is the mortgage and can you actually afford the house? Do you qualify for a ch 7 and have you taken the means test to determine that? As to the second part of your question about your Father-In-Law's debt, if you include this debt (even if you are an authorized card holder), the cc will go after him for the discharged balance.
Remember, filing for BK is like getting a fresh start. You and your fiancee NEED TO BE on the same page or you will find yourself in the same situation a few years from now. A ch 13 is much harder because it requires you to live within your means, on a tight budget and lots of planning.
Good Luck!

[WantOuttaDebt]

Luckily the mortgage payment isn't that bad. It was a great started home and with my decent job I can do the payment and the BK payments even without my fiance's income. The mortgage balance is only $54,000 and the monthly payment is only $765.44.

According to the attorney if I want to keep the house he says 7 isn't the way to go since i am behind in payments. I know people who have used this attorney's office before and it has been a fairly decent experience hence why I went there first. There's so many out there and I know a lot of them can be sketchy and out for the $$.

I have already talked to future father-in-law and he said that he is more than willing to help us keep and stay within our means. I don't think that he even thought about the discharged debt to be honest with me including it. I don't want that to happen to him though.

And you can believe me that I understand that filing is to get a fresh start and I have already told my fiance that things have to change. I don't go out spending $$ on crap we don't need and I am tired of having to pinch every penny because he makes a careless purchase. I will not do it anymore for the sake of my kids. He realizes that if he wants to marry me know things MUST CHANGE. I am watching out for ALL OUR FUTURE. Look at the economy now and I realize that there are so many more people out there that are so much worse off than I am at this time. Hence why thing are going to change for the better. I am determined to make it.

Before I got with my fiance I had plenty of savings out there and I should have realized earlier on that he wasn't that way but unfortunately I didn't. By the time I realized that things were out of control we had two beautiful children to take care of and I must keep it together for them and get headed in the right direction.

Where can I take this means test that you are talking about? I am looking to learn as much as I can to arm myself so to speak.

[Flamingo]

Welcome aboard WantOuttaDebt! Liz already answered what I was going to respond to and that was the debt your father-in-law incurred for you and your hubby on his own credit cards. Did you mention that to the attorney you consulted with? Since you owe your father-in-law he might be able to be included as a creditor in your Plan or, when you are better off after this is all over, you may want to try to repay him if you can or maybe he will just let it go for you. I would definately discuss with your attorney and your father-in-law. As to your other concern as to how to stop the cycle you are in; the Chapter 13 you will file will be a big eye opener as it will force you to live on a budget, cash only with no credit, and you will learn to drastically change your lifestyle to successfully complete the plan and be discharged. People going through a Chapter 7 don't have to go through the years of payments and I firmly believe a Chapter 13 instills relearning about money and how to handle it. You will find after a while that there was no reason to go out and by things you don't need and may actually start to view shopping in an entirely different light. Hopefully after discharge you will carry on those newfound values with you and not repeat the spending/habits. Know, however, that a lot of people have trouble adjusting their lifestyle and spending habits and that is the main reason for Plan failure. Try to work hard to make those payments on time and all other bills (utilities, etc.) on time while in the Plan. There is a lot of help/information in this forum as to folks in the same situation as you or that have been in the same situation.

[justbroke]

Very important thing to note here. Have you consummated your relationship (are you married)? i ask, because you could run into issues if you're not married. While the children are yours, you could lose valuable "deductions" when your Disposable Monthly Income is determined.

I know... I had a fiance, but I've fixed that problem. I've already been called to the table on this by the Auto Lender, saying that the 2nd car was not necessary for reorganization because she was only my fiance.

We sealed the deal last week.

[liz417]

We sealed the deal last week.

Congrats justbroke!

[WantOuttaDebt]

congrats justbroke.

No we aren't married but I do claim them on my taxes if that makes a difference. We planned to seal the deal when I got pregnant with #2 by flying out to Vegas but then $$ issues came up and so did the issues of who was going to watch our 1 1/2 year son. So we are just engaged still.

I also am planning on having payments taken directly out of my check for the plan and once we get a system going plan on doing the direct payment option with almost everything so bills will be on time. I get very frustrated when I see a bill come in and think that it must be paid but well it's going to have to wait till I can pay it.

I have lived on cash only really except when we would run into the problems that we didn't have the cash for and Future father in law helped (which lately ended up being too much). I learned the hard way in college with ONE CREDIT CARD. If I don't have the cash for it it don't get purchased.

Things are going to turn around though. They have to. I am a very optimistic person but lately with all this the pessimistic thinking was trying to set in. We all deserve better than this and I know it will happen.

[justbroke]

Thanks to all for the congrats.

Your children wont' be an issue. The issue will be if you claim your fiance as a dependent. A very harsh ruling, which is now caselaw, basically read that if you have no legal responsibility for someone (as a dependent), then the Bankruptcy court won't recognize that person, when it pertains to the "allowances" that you get to reduce your disposable monthly income.

I could legally claim my fiance's children, but not her (due to State law), but even then, the Trustee would have made me pay as if I were single! That would mean 100% to unsecured and a $7K+ monthly payment!!!

[WantOuttaDebt]

I didn't even include his information on my forms. I didn't plan on using him as a dependent

[AngelinaCatHub]

[liz417]

Very good advice 'Hub....

[justbroke]

Now you tell me! After I get married!

[WantOuttaDebt]

Hence the reason I have been engaged for 3 years now. He thinks it's because I don't love him, I say it's because i don't love his spending habits.