Do I have to include my car?

[deepinit]

I am filing at the end of this month
- we just purchased our old leased vehicle and have a 5 year loan at a 13% rate - do I have to include this in the bk or can I keep this and pay it outside of my plan?
We are set up to pay 0% back to creditors because we are current on the home and only have unsecured cc debt ( up until we bought the car that is)

I was told prior to purchasing the car the we would have a 36 month plan with 0% back to creditors and it would be about $80 per month give or take.

I am hoping that we can keep it seperate - but I am now thinking that the trustee will want to get that percentage paid to him or her.

Any thoughts

[lrprn]

...we just purchased our old leased vehicle and have a 5 year loan at a 13% rate - do I have to include this in the bk or can I keep this and pay it outside of my plan?

There seems to be some confusion here about what it means to "include" something in your bankruptcy.

When you file bankruptcy (Ch 7 or Ch 13), you are required by law to include *ALL* your debts when you file. That means that all of your debts no matter how big or small must be listed on your filing forms. That includes your car.

Now *PAYING* secured loans like your car's inside or outside your plan means something completely different. Paying inside your plan after filing means your trustee will be making the car loan payments for you. Paying outside your plan after filing means you continue to make the car loan payments directly to your lender yourself.

So....if you are asking if you have to include the car on your bk filing papers, then the answer is YES.

Or if you are asking if you can continue to make the car payments yourself after filing, then the answer is it depends on your trustee's and local court's preferences. A few trustees require the plan to be set up so the trustee will make all asset payments for the filer. However, most trustees will go along with whatever you and your lawyer set up in the plan. If you prefer to make your car payments yourself, then unless you are in a local court that doesn't allow it or there's a reason that it's not in your best interests to make the payments yourself, you very likely can continue to pay your auto lender directly yourself.

Your lawyer is the best source on what to expect in your specific situation.

[SMinGA]

One concern - if you only had DMI for a plan payment of $80 before, what change does the car payment make? I assume you replaced the lease payment with a loan payment so if the loan payment is lower, your DMI & plan payment will be higher. Update your atty...