This is most definitely NOT a whine about my dear husband (DH). We had been cohabitating together for a while before the credit/economic crisis hit, and his bank account had nothing to do with why I married him. LOL I brought my own credit mess into this - a judgment as well as a repo. Divorces will do that to ya... especially when one loses a job in the process of trying to rid themselves of a rotten relationship!
Meanwhile, we decided at the very LAST minute to NOT include me in the BK. It was a good thing, too, because my father died within a week, leaving me 1/3 ownership in his home in another state in which my stepmom still resides. We are 100% sure that the trustee cannot go after it because it is considered MY separate property. At this point, however, I can't file BK because I don't want to see my father's widow on the streets because I filed bankruptcy and they liquidated the asset SHE lives in!
Meanwhile, year one brought some challenges in DH's BK in that there was a lapse of income due to a change of job (a short term loss for what we had hoped would be a long-term gain - moving from a 100% commissioned gig to a salary+commission structure with a bit more predictability). He ended up filing a second time a year later, and thanks to the cram down on a vehicle, actually got a new plan with lower payments than before.
Darn if the same challenges didn't hit AGAIN when the "new" employer filed bankruptcy earlier this year and DH found himself unemployed.
He took a job on a short term basis to keep the lights on (better than unemployment benefits), and left them within 3 months when a more comparable position came along to the one he had when his previous employer had filed. But again, a few missed BK payments, a few missed mortgage payments, and in trying to get back on the horse, the trustee is calling for a review of the plan because obviously, to make up the missed payments, our monthly BK nut is going to go UP.
Now, I've gone from fulltime mom to a little part-time work that, unfortunately, doesn't make up the arrearages needed to make the BK payments. I've got my OWN set of obligations (child support, which is a LONG story in that I don't actually pay any NOW due to a credit on CS because the X owes me money for equity in our home which is effectively a wash for the next 7 years as far as what is written in our decree, but that wouldn't stop the X from filing for a modification in order to raise the monthly number in order to shorten that timeframe). I've also got a judgment for $11K from a credit card company, and several others which never sued, but shouldn't be able to do so at this point because it's been five years since I stopped paying them and if they WERE to sue at this point, I'd fight tooth and nail on it because the statute of limitations in Texas is four years.
All that being said, I'm considering returning to work, but it's laden with challenges. A) Child care expenses, B) an increased child support obligation, C) the "rules" regarding household income during a Chapter 13, D) the possibility that the entity with the judgment will garnish wages.
I've heard that if MY income goes up, even though I'm NOT on the BK and NOT listed on ANY asset which hangs in the balance on the BK, the trustee can demand higher payments. DH and I have discussed this with each other (he has an appointment with his BK attorney on 10/30, so we'll be asking these questions of him as well), and DH's opinion is, "Gee, if you going back to work just means they're going to want a bigger share of the pie, not to mention your X wanting a cut of it, it doesn't seem like we're really GAINING any real advantage. I also question how it would work if the BK does demand a higher payment due to my increased income (even though I'm NOT on the BK), and after-the-fact my wages are garnished, what happens THEN?
One more thing, I'd be returning to work in order to ensure we are able to hang onto our home, as the language in my final divorce decree is tied to the geographic area where we live (and walking away on a Chapter 7 creates MORE challenges since our current mortgage is cheaper than what rent would cost us in the same area.... we bought the home as a HUD foreclosure... cheap, cheap.... and we're NOT going to fare well in an attempt to relocate locally).
What say you? Anybody been here? Has anyone stepped up to the plate to get a job to supplement the family income post BK-filing where you didn't previously have one, only to find out that the Chapter 13 trustee said "MINE!"
Meanwhile, we decided at the very LAST minute to NOT include me in the BK. It was a good thing, too, because my father died within a week, leaving me 1/3 ownership in his home in another state in which my stepmom still resides. We are 100% sure that the trustee cannot go after it because it is considered MY separate property. At this point, however, I can't file BK because I don't want to see my father's widow on the streets because I filed bankruptcy and they liquidated the asset SHE lives in!
Meanwhile, year one brought some challenges in DH's BK in that there was a lapse of income due to a change of job (a short term loss for what we had hoped would be a long-term gain - moving from a 100% commissioned gig to a salary+commission structure with a bit more predictability). He ended up filing a second time a year later, and thanks to the cram down on a vehicle, actually got a new plan with lower payments than before.
Darn if the same challenges didn't hit AGAIN when the "new" employer filed bankruptcy earlier this year and DH found himself unemployed.
He took a job on a short term basis to keep the lights on (better than unemployment benefits), and left them within 3 months when a more comparable position came along to the one he had when his previous employer had filed. But again, a few missed BK payments, a few missed mortgage payments, and in trying to get back on the horse, the trustee is calling for a review of the plan because obviously, to make up the missed payments, our monthly BK nut is going to go UP.
Now, I've gone from fulltime mom to a little part-time work that, unfortunately, doesn't make up the arrearages needed to make the BK payments. I've got my OWN set of obligations (child support, which is a LONG story in that I don't actually pay any NOW due to a credit on CS because the X owes me money for equity in our home which is effectively a wash for the next 7 years as far as what is written in our decree, but that wouldn't stop the X from filing for a modification in order to raise the monthly number in order to shorten that timeframe). I've also got a judgment for $11K from a credit card company, and several others which never sued, but shouldn't be able to do so at this point because it's been five years since I stopped paying them and if they WERE to sue at this point, I'd fight tooth and nail on it because the statute of limitations in Texas is four years.
All that being said, I'm considering returning to work, but it's laden with challenges. A) Child care expenses, B) an increased child support obligation, C) the "rules" regarding household income during a Chapter 13, D) the possibility that the entity with the judgment will garnish wages.
I've heard that if MY income goes up, even though I'm NOT on the BK and NOT listed on ANY asset which hangs in the balance on the BK, the trustee can demand higher payments. DH and I have discussed this with each other (he has an appointment with his BK attorney on 10/30, so we'll be asking these questions of him as well), and DH's opinion is, "Gee, if you going back to work just means they're going to want a bigger share of the pie, not to mention your X wanting a cut of it, it doesn't seem like we're really GAINING any real advantage. I also question how it would work if the BK does demand a higher payment due to my increased income (even though I'm NOT on the BK), and after-the-fact my wages are garnished, what happens THEN?
One more thing, I'd be returning to work in order to ensure we are able to hang onto our home, as the language in my final divorce decree is tied to the geographic area where we live (and walking away on a Chapter 7 creates MORE challenges since our current mortgage is cheaper than what rent would cost us in the same area.... we bought the home as a HUD foreclosure... cheap, cheap.... and we're NOT going to fare well in an attempt to relocate locally).
What say you? Anybody been here? Has anyone stepped up to the plate to get a job to supplement the family income post BK-filing where you didn't previously have one, only to find out that the Chapter 13 trustee said "MINE!"
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