Above median but $787 negative NDI

[ivehadit]

This seems really odd when i run the numbers but I think I can explain it later. First off I need to qualify for a 13 because I want to strip my 2nd. 1st is 144,000 real value probably 120,000 or less it's an old farmhouse and the basement wall in one area is collapsing/crumbling. I was stupid 6 yrs ago and got a 2nd for 26,000 and put 25,000 toward CC debt I paid monthly min on it till Nov 09 finally throwing in the towel on it. quit paying CC's ($30,000) 32 months ago and have not been sued yet, DW has 15,000 CC debt and stopped paying the same time I did and GEMB got a judgement on her last year.
I am above the median for OH by $650 monthly I filled out the online calculator on legalconsumer website and according to that I'm neg $787 monthly. I used the numbers that were provided except for housing and utilities which is actually $600 higher and telecommunications internet and sat tv at $220. 2 vehicles no payments
How will this affect my plans to do a 13?? according to these numbers I can't afford a 13. But the way I can do it is the allowable ammount is above what i actually need I do all my own car maintenance wear my clothes till they're falling off my back and have my own garden and eat on the cheap. Anyone with some answers please help I don't want to BK if I can't include the 2nd and i want to keep my house I'm getting close to 1/3 of the way through my mortgage and don't want to toss it away now.

[keepinitreal]

it's an old farmhouse and the basement wall in one area is collapsing/crumbling.

Do you feel confident you can afford to fix this problem with your house after you re-affirm your first mortgage and strip the second? Sounds like a scary situation to me. Good luck!

[ivehadit]

Do you feel confident you can afford to fix this problem with your house after you re-affirm your first mortgage and strip the second? Sounds like a scary situation to me. Good luck!

I do,, I have lots of oppertunity to make extra money at home repairing other people's equipment I could easily pull an extra 20-25K without killing myself. I don't have the motivation to do it right now for two simple reasons, 1. that wouldn't be enough to make much of a dent in my bills most would get eaten up in interest and 2. raising my income before BK isn't a wise move. I'll fix the wall myself to me it's not that big a deal, although it is load bearing it's an inner wall, nothing a heavy beam and a jack can't fix lol. I'm sure an appraiser would flip out though.

[momofthree]

Our DMI was -$990 on the means test and we're in a ch. 13. They base your payment on your actual expenses (schedules I & J), not on the means test. So, for example, the means test allows us $1186 per month for food and clothing, but our schedule J only lists that expense at $480 ($450 food, $30 clothing). Our transportation costs are less on schedule J as well.

When we sat down with our attorney, he basically said, "Okay, we need to find $XXX in your budget. We'll subtract $100 here, $25 there, etc etc" until we made it work.

We, too, wanted to strip our 2nd mortgage, so we wanted the 13 even though we qualify for a ch.7.

[klandsb]

I venture to say momofthree is correct. The I & J schedules were used for my pmt amt and not really the means test. I have read somewhere that the means test only determines if you qualify for a 7 or 13...

[lrprn]

Whether the Means Test disposable income or Schedule I minus J disposable income determines your payment depends on the bankruptcy district and your local court rulings and judicial opinions. You can't assume one or the other.

The best thing you can do for yourself and your DW right now is to set up free initial consultations with at least 3-4 experienced bk lawyers in your area who file a fair number of Ch 13s and are familiar with lien stripping. That's where you'll find out where you stand, and you can also figure out which lawyer is going to represent your interests the best.

Something to consider.....please keep in mind that although it may be very difficult to think about giving up this house that you've invested so much of yourself into, you have to look at financial matters like this with a cold, emotionless eye to figure out what's going to be the best option for your family in the long run. Your family's peace of mind and living stress-free rather than struggling under a large house debt are worth a lot more than any house (especially one with major structural issues). Houses can be replaced. Families can't. Just some food for thought....

[ivehadit]

Sounds like good news, we will be able to bring the number to a low positive which should result in low percentage payback as long as I can still afford the plan. My goal now is to set the record for lowest percentage payback lol.

We are planning on shopping for a lawyer soon in the mean time I'm trying to educate myself as much as possible with the help of this forum and the good people on it so I can ask the right questions.

I've seriously thought of walking away from the house and being done with it all through a 7 but we do like where we are and if i do that I'll lose my option to make extra income working from home. plus i'm not sure I could qualify for a 7 if not for the house.

[SMinGA]

If you are certain you can make a 13 work - then it is worth talking to a few attorneys in my opinion.

Personally, we cut back wherever possible but that still had us in the negative each month and falling further behind on our mortgage. (No second, not upside down.) Took months, but ultimately I found a 2nd job to increase our income to the point where we could be ahead (and not behind) each month, and ultimately to file ch. 13.

The main thing to consider - is while you may be able to scrimp and do without for a while, can you do that long term? Seems you have some backup in that you believe you can make a few extra dollars here & there. While I don't intend to work 2 jobs for 5 years - we are confident that at some point my husband will find a better paying job and then I'll be able to cut back or cut out my 2nd job hours. In the meantime - I've worked 2 jobs before (on top of being in school & pregnant) so I know I can handle it for as long as necessary.