Saw 2nd lawyer today for consult....more questions

[indebt00]

I liked this one a lot. His answers were more what I expected and not the rosy ones the 1st lawyer gave us.

One thing that may affect others here....he said my life insurance proceeds (cash) are not safe and its best to have the money gone before we file. I am going to make a couple months mort pymts and some other things. He said the main thing trustees want is cash and didn't feel safe leaving it there.

I am open to any reasonable ways to spend this money. I really wanted ot be able to save it and that isn't going to happen. any creative ideas are good too.

We also have to include the car loan, which is fine with me. The best news was that it looks like we can lien strip our 3rd mortgage. this is good news too.

bad news we expected...we will lose Disney timeshare even though its deeded. The trustees see it as a luxury item that takes from our pymt. we are surrendering it I guess.

We did not retain him yet. but we are not sure we are up to more stressful interviews. We really thought the guy knew his stuff today and he knew a lot about our trustees.

Fees are $4000.....a little high...but that includes the lien strip. so...will keep you guys posted.
thanks for all the help so far. and I would love to hear ANY comments on what you guys think about the above items.

[lrprn]

The advice you received sounds reasonable, indebt. And about the $4K retainer....given that you are including the lien strip and have other complicating factors (the time share, life insurance proceeds, etc) that seems reasonable too.

When you retain a Ch 13 lawyer, the cheapest fee is typically *not* the lawyer who does a great job for you. Go with the one you think is going to represent your interests the best, answered your questions in a realistic, honest way, and that you feel you can get along with for five long years.

[EricaCallaha]

What about some car maintenance that you have been putting off. New tires?! Build a small food storage of canned goods, sugar, flour, cereal, soda. Home repairs are good too. How is the hot water heater? The furnace? The roof? Need a new fridge?

Good luck.

[EricaCallaha]

Bummer about the timeshare, by the way.

[BnkrptcyLwyr]

How about using the life insurance to pay off the timeshare? You might want to wait 90 days to avoid any issues with potential preferences (if it's even a problem). Then the maintenance fees are trivial and not much of an issue (depending on how much they are).

If your budget is tight in a chapter 13 ... how about buying a car outright and getting rid of a car payment to free up the money for other expenses?

There are a slew of things you can do, and different strategies.

[indebt00]

How about using the life insurance to pay off the timeshare? You might want to wait 90 days to avoid any issues with potential preferences (if it's even a problem). Then the maintenance fees are trivial and not much of an issue (depending on how much they are).

If your budget is tight in a chapter 13 ... how about buying a car outright and getting rid of a car payment to free up the money for other expenses?

There are a slew of things you can do, and different strategies.

I asked about using the money to pay off the timeshare. He said we would need to prove someone else was paying the dues for the whole time so that this luxury was not costing us any money. We would have to prove payments by someone else for that. he thought it also was something that would bring extra attention to our case. now...I would fight for this if I thought we could do it.

we retained this lawyer today. we felt he knew the trustees and bk 13 really well. We felt as if he would work hard for us.

The insurance is $10,000. we have 2 brand new cars and feel better about them than buying an old car.
we were told to not spend the money on anything "fun"

[indebt00]

Bummer about the timeshare, by the way.

such a bummer. I know there are worse things...but it was the most emotional for me....it was really a dream to own Disney.

[EricaCallaha]

Maybe one day you still can....About 5 years from now.

Hmmmm, non fun spending of $10K. That will require thought.

[gymbo]

timeshare

My attorney told me "trustees RUN from timeshares" because they cannot get any money for them.
Just an FYI

[HHM]

My attorney told me "trustees RUN from timeshares" because they cannot get any money for them.
Just an FYI

That's true, but the issue here is not the timeshare as an "asset" but as an expense. The expenses is typically not allowed.

[indebt00]

That's true, but the issue here is not the timeshare as an "asset" but as an expense. The expenses is typically not allowed.

exactly....we are not allowed to have the monthly expense of either the payment OR the dues. We asked if we could pay it off and we would still have to prove someone else was paying the dues for the next 5 yrs. this is only $60 a month...but I guess our trustees see this as money that can go to debt.

[indebt00]

Maybe one day you still can....About 5 years from now.

Hmmmm, non fun spending of $10K. That will require thought.

its not as easy as you would think to spend it wisely. its really hard and I was hoping this would be protected and our savings for the next 5 yrs.

I really need help on ideas of passable things to spend on. We are going to ask lawyer if we can buy a new bed and diswasher. ??? I have not come up with ideas past that yet.

[EricaCallaha]

What about a refrigerator, a new washing machine and dryer? Those can be pricey, but worth it if yours are getting up there in age. How is the roof? Need some repair. If they told me to spend 10K on passable expenses, I don't know what we would do. It would be nice to have squirreled some away for savings. Does your car need new tires and brakes. That can eat anywhere from $500-$1000 right there.

Shoot, that is all I can think of. Hopefully your lawyer might have some other ideas.

Good luck.

[JoeBankrupt33]

Does your mattress need some more stuffing? Just kidding, but I'm sure a lot of folks have thought about it.

[woeisme]

how about dental work, new glasses? or a freezer for storing stuff, allows you to buy cheaper in bulk, could help with the food bill down the line. Home improvement projects, if your work requires a computer, how about a new laptop.