I am ready to throw in the towel because this isn't working for us
I really wish I had found this site BEFORE we filed- I would have at least had some guidance that our attorney didn't provide for us and maybe even have filed on our own. We have a confirmed chapter 13 plan, but it makes no sense to me, our attorney is not communicating at all, we need to amend it, we are 2 months behind on payments and the trustee filed a motion to dismiss. I can come up with the 2 months, but February's is still due and that one's a problem. The woman at the trustee's office told us we should have called- they filed the motion to dismiss the day before they received a payment from us. Had they known the payment was coming they wouldn't have filed they said. Well, our attorney knew we were behind, but we never thought to call the trustee and talk to her. Anyways, she said we could have the attorney file to extend the payment due date or work out a payment plan. We have called, emailed and actually faxed the attorney about the situation. The faxed letter finally got a response from the paralegal on Tuesday that she would check with the attorney that day and get back to us. Well, it's Sunday and she never got back to us. Husband seems to think they're just not as stressed about it as we are and they'll file what they need to in time. I am not so calm and trusting because of the history with this attorney.
We have contacted our attorney several times about this before the plan was confirmed in Dec, we even told them when we fell behind on payments that the plan amount was not working with our budget and we even had to take pay day loans every paycheck for about 2 months. (You know how it works- borrow $500 against next pay day, but that pay day you're $500 short for those expenses for that 2 week period because you paid it back, so you borrow again, and on and on. We finally broke free of that when my husband got his $1000 Xmas bonus from his employer). Yet, nothing is done.
We talk to the paralegal. She says she'll talk to the attorney. We don't hear back, or we do and she says she hasn't had a chance to talk to the attorney or she doesn't have any answers yet. We call the attorney's line directly and leave voicemail, she has the paralegal call us back instead of her calling us back. I am so sick and tired of having nothing done.
Our plan needs to be amended. The vehicle loan was supposed to be crammed down, it wasn't. Our plan was filed with the value of the vehicle listed, but the creditor file a claim in the full amount and on the trustee's website it shows us paying towards that amount. Our attorney's office said they had to wait to file the proposal to change the loan value until after the creditor filed their secured claim, but had us sign paperwork back in June when we filed so that as soon as the claim was filed they could file that change. The creditor claim was filed in July, for full loan amount. It was refiled in September, just changing the attorney that was representing the credit union to one that was local to our bankruptcy district. Yet, nothing's been done to address the loan value.
We've had changes in expenses/income. Husband's job now takes $200 a month for 401K contributions that we weren't doing before because he hadn't been at the job long enough. That's the minimum amount- we would like to contribute more because we have NO retirement savings so far but can't. Of course, we "could" (if I am understanding correctly that 401K contributions are allowed to be budgeted for when filing a plan) but our plan currently doesn't allow us the means to do that. Our car insurance also- our 17 year old son is waiting to get his license because our insurance plan will go up $220 a month according to the quote and we can't cover that right now either so he is still holding just a permit. I've had to pull our 7yo son from school and start homeschooling him, a big budget buster. When the paralegal asked about schooling expenses for our 6 children, I guessed maybe $130 a month (figuring field trips, various dues, sports fees). I had NO clue, and got no guidance from her to include school lunches (thought this had to be covered under our gov't allotted amount towards our food budget), college testing fees, application fees, upcoming pre-school fees (also about to start as our youngest son just turned 4), school supplies,etc. I also had no idea that I could include summer camp expenses for my middle and elementary schoolers as "child care expenses". I just thought I'ld have to tell them no more summer camp at the YMCA. Really, our disposable income probably should have been near zero if I had known any of this ahead of time (which makes since because it's not like we don't live paycheck to paycheck). I am just very very frustrated with the whole thing. No communication. No guidance. AND, we were clearly told when we went in to sign the papers that the plan amount was a starting point, it would most likely go DOWN depending on how many creditors filed claims. Well, we were naive and believed that but that's obviously a lie. The plan amount stays the same, it just means that the unsecured creditors get more if not everyone files.
I used a handy online plan calculator that someone posted in a sticky thread here- if we cram down the vehicle and drop our plan payment down to 1300 a month the plan works. $500 a month is a HUGE difference in plan payment.
This was supposed to be a workable plan, it was supposed to relieve our stress, and all it is doing is adding to it.
We have contacted our attorney several times about this before the plan was confirmed in Dec, we even told them when we fell behind on payments that the plan amount was not working with our budget and we even had to take pay day loans every paycheck for about 2 months. (You know how it works- borrow $500 against next pay day, but that pay day you're $500 short for those expenses for that 2 week period because you paid it back, so you borrow again, and on and on. We finally broke free of that when my husband got his $1000 Xmas bonus from his employer). Yet, nothing is done.
We talk to the paralegal. She says she'll talk to the attorney. We don't hear back, or we do and she says she hasn't had a chance to talk to the attorney or she doesn't have any answers yet. We call the attorney's line directly and leave voicemail, she has the paralegal call us back instead of her calling us back. I am so sick and tired of having nothing done.
Our plan needs to be amended. The vehicle loan was supposed to be crammed down, it wasn't. Our plan was filed with the value of the vehicle listed, but the creditor file a claim in the full amount and on the trustee's website it shows us paying towards that amount. Our attorney's office said they had to wait to file the proposal to change the loan value until after the creditor filed their secured claim, but had us sign paperwork back in June when we filed so that as soon as the claim was filed they could file that change. The creditor claim was filed in July, for full loan amount. It was refiled in September, just changing the attorney that was representing the credit union to one that was local to our bankruptcy district. Yet, nothing's been done to address the loan value.
We've had changes in expenses/income. Husband's job now takes $200 a month for 401K contributions that we weren't doing before because he hadn't been at the job long enough. That's the minimum amount- we would like to contribute more because we have NO retirement savings so far but can't. Of course, we "could" (if I am understanding correctly that 401K contributions are allowed to be budgeted for when filing a plan) but our plan currently doesn't allow us the means to do that. Our car insurance also- our 17 year old son is waiting to get his license because our insurance plan will go up $220 a month according to the quote and we can't cover that right now either so he is still holding just a permit. I've had to pull our 7yo son from school and start homeschooling him, a big budget buster. When the paralegal asked about schooling expenses for our 6 children, I guessed maybe $130 a month (figuring field trips, various dues, sports fees). I had NO clue, and got no guidance from her to include school lunches (thought this had to be covered under our gov't allotted amount towards our food budget), college testing fees, application fees, upcoming pre-school fees (also about to start as our youngest son just turned 4), school supplies,etc. I also had no idea that I could include summer camp expenses for my middle and elementary schoolers as "child care expenses". I just thought I'ld have to tell them no more summer camp at the YMCA. Really, our disposable income probably should have been near zero if I had known any of this ahead of time (which makes since because it's not like we don't live paycheck to paycheck). I am just very very frustrated with the whole thing. No communication. No guidance. AND, we were clearly told when we went in to sign the papers that the plan amount was a starting point, it would most likely go DOWN depending on how many creditors filed claims. Well, we were naive and believed that but that's obviously a lie. The plan amount stays the same, it just means that the unsecured creditors get more if not everyone files.
I used a handy online plan calculator that someone posted in a sticky thread here- if we cram down the vehicle and drop our plan payment down to 1300 a month the plan works. $500 a month is a HUGE difference in plan payment.
This was supposed to be a workable plan, it was supposed to relieve our stress, and all it is doing is adding to it.
DH is trying to remain calm and not yell and get in her face because he says we just don't know if she's doing her job and just the communication stinks or what. I think, however, that we know she's not doing it...or her paralegal isn't doing it...or the left isn't talking to the right..."something" is not right. NOW I know why this particular attorney refuses to include any of her fees in the actual bankruptcy (I wonder what percentage of her cases don't get confirmed, or are dismissed prior to completion). She has her $- less incentive for her to see the plan through. The more additional motions or hearings or amendments that happen now the plan is confirmed, the more $ she gets to charge. Like I said- I'm ready to just throw in the towel (what I really wish is that I could file complaints with the state board or get my $ back for her non-representation, but I told DH that we only ever spoke to her twice...she doesn't even attend the 341 or Confirmation, but sends a proxy...the rest of the time we have dealt with her paralegal (not by choice, but when someone would return our call finally it was the paralegal). So technically, it was the paralegal who, for example, gave us bad advice and information regarding the plan payment and how it "would most likely go down depending on how many creditors file claims", not the attorney. GRRRRR)
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