Prepaid funeral Plan Expenses

[overspent]

My parents are in the 80s (another state, not living with us). We just bought prepaid funeral plans for them paying $300/month. Can I include this as neccessary expenses in schedule J?

Thnaks.

[AngelinaCatHub]

My parents are in the 80s (another state, not living with us). We just bought prepaid funeral plans for them paying $300/month. Can I include this as neccessary expenses in schedule J?

Thnaks.

This is my guess, NO. Reason, no immediate need, second, it is not for your use (hopefully) and you actually are not responsible for their deaths if one survives, the other is responsible (by law, not morals)

I believe the first son is responsible for a last parent but it would be by a state to state laws I'm sure.

$300 a month is a hefty amount. 'Hub

[lrprn]

As Hub notes, the issue here is that the funeral plans you purchased are not for your immediate family, plus the family members the funeral plans are for don't live in your household - not even in your state.

When exactly did you purchase these plans? What's the length of the plan loan and what are the terms? Are the plans unsecured? Please pardon my directness, but did you purchase the funeral plans as a way to increase your expenses before filing your 13?

Chances are good your trustee will challenge this expense as unreasonable because it's not a necessity. Can your parents afford the payments if it turns out you can't include them in your plan and can't afford the $300/month (very likely since Ch 13 takes *all* your disposable income)?

The best way to find out what to expect is to ask your lawyer (or ask this question during your free initial interviews with 3-4 experienced bk lawyers in your area). But don't be surprised if the answer is no, you can't include it as an expense.

I wish you had asked a bk lawyer how purchasing these plans would impact your filing before you did it, but that's water under the bridge now.