I have a timing question on when to stop paying/using credit cards

[indebt00]

Is the 90 day rule looked at as the last 90 days from the day you FILE or the date of your last activity???

I notice some of you are waiting out your 90 days so charges are not considered bad....and you are waiting to file, etc.....so.....

do you stop paying/using and put up with collection calls for 90 days then hire lawyer?

or do you hire lawyer early for protection and then do the 90 no use deal?

we live on our cards and are trying to plan for cutoff and timing issues. we are terribly afraid of getting collection calls at work (could cause probs for both of us). so if we hire now and wait the 90 days...do the trustees look at the day we hired lawyer and back 90, or date we file and back 90, or last time we paid/used back 90?????

I hope I made this question make sense. thank you !!!!!

[liz417]

Is the 90 day rule looked at as the last 90 days from the day you FILE or the date of your last activity???The 90 days should be from your last credit card. Time is your best friend...the more time between your last credit charge and your filing date, the better

I notice some of you are waiting out your 90 days so charges are not considered bad....and you are waiting to file, etc.....so.....I wasn't waiting for charges to drop off, I was saving money trying to pay my attorney in full before he files our case.

do you stop paying/using and put up with collection calls for 90 days then hire lawyer?WE were current on all bills/mortgage when we went to our 1st consultation, our attorney advised us to stop paying all debt that we plan to discharge/include in BK. We retained out attorney the same day we met with him and he said to send all collection calls his way The calls started within 2 weeks of default. I picked up the phone and gave each creditor our attorney info and haven't heard a peep from them since...we stopped paying in mid May '08

or do you hire lawyer early for protection and then do the 90 no use deal?

we live on our cards and are trying to plan for cutoff and timing issues. we are terribly afraid of getting collection calls at work (could cause probs for both of us). so if we hire now and wait the 90 days...do the trustees look at the day we hired lawyer and back 90, or date we file and back 90, or last time we paid/used back 90????? The creditors will call your work if they CANNOT get hold of you, make sure you answer the phone every once in awhile to let them know you did not drop off the face of the earth The trustee will look at your last cc activity. Period. It's best to get used to the idea of living on a cash-only basis because you will be without credit for the life of your BK repayment plan. I know it's hard and you don't realize (at least I hadn't ) how much you use credit cards as a crutch to purchase everyday items. Now I think about each purchase rather it be $10 or $100...I ask myself, "do I really need it?"

I hope I made this question make sense. thank you !!!!!

Take a deep breath, you be fine.

[253BK]

My trustee went back 6 months and wanted us to explain all credit card purchases over 250$ and also all deposits over 500$ I would give it 4-6 months before filing BUT make sure to answer just tell them you are filing BK 13 and give them the attorney name and nymber they will go away for alittle while!

Then they will start up again hopefully around your 5th or 6th month mark!

Hang in there

[Flamingo]

Our situation prior to filing might give you some insight to your questions...we made minimum payments on everything and secured in full and on time until we retained our attorney (even that was a severe struggle). Our attorney advised us upon retention to stop all payments, except mortgage payments. That was in 2/02, we filed 4/02. Prior to filing, we had to provide one year of bank statements and also provide credit card statements for one year showing any purchases over a certain amount. That goes to show you the look back period can go over three to six months. Depends on the requirements for your area/trustee. We were advised that is what the Trustee requires. On the bank statements we had to explain what every deposit was over a certain amount and every withdrawal, check written, over a certain amount. It was a lot of work but we complied and there was no problem. We were mostly prior to that time robbing Peter to pay Paul trying not to file. Of course one can only do that so long before reality slaps one in the face.

Since you are living off your cards right now all you are doing is running up higher debt as we did trying not to file. I would highly suggest at this point in your situation to get a few free consultations and get a hard view of your situation and the attorney can advise you what you can expect as to providing information prior to filing in your district and what your trustee may require.

Best of luck to you...

[intipuca]

How does the trustee get the cc and bank information? Do they have the power to get it themselves from the cc and bank, or does the filer need to provide it for them?

I've only been asked for the last two cc statements and the last two bank statements.

[indebt00]

My trustee went back 6 months and wanted us to explain all credit card purchases over 250$ and also all deposits over 500$ I would give it 4-6 months before filing BUT make sure to answer just tell them you are filing BK 13 and give them the attorney name and nymber they will go away for alittle while!

Then they will start up again hopefully around your 5th or 6th month mark!

Hang in there

and just curious how did you explain those purchases? life? living?

we have been using our cards and paying our bills??? I have been researching ch 13 for a while but we were never really sure we were going that direction.
so we have been continuing to live as normal. we have been waiting to see how some job/money possibilities turn out. so I guess I am worried that our normal way of life could cause issues down the road if we do file...that is really what I worried about. we are still holding out hope at this immediate moment....we will also need to save for the fees...which I am guessing will be substantial.
as many of you have said...its going to be a huge adjustment living without credit...its just a part of every day life anymore.

so basically....hire the lawyer, stop paying, wait a few months to file? that seems to be the general consensus.....and good food for thought.