Buying a new car with a mlm car bonus before fiLing.

[Dwingate]

So I'm getting ready to file a bankruptcy and my 97 van has finally broke down. I do have a mini Cooper my wife drives and we have 4 kids that live at home and 2 that don't. I have a home based business that I have earned a car bonus in. The bonus is $800 a month. You automatically get 300 which I am using towards the mini. If I go out and get a luxury vehicle 5 yrs or newer it unlocks the other $500. If I can get into a $24,000 cadillac with nothing down and the payments around $500 would it be ok to do a week before I file?

[justbroke]

I can't tell you exactly to incur debt right before filing, but I can also say that many people, including myself, have purchased cars just before filing. In fact, I purchased a car one week before filing without a question asked (and it was about the same value as what you list). However, you may want to ask your attorney if the payment should be at or below the national allowance ($471/month). If you're doing it yourself then you could ask during a few free consultations... which we highly recommend.

The nice thing is that the car should help your expenses, otherwise you'll have that $500 exposed as possibly "disposable monthly income" (DMI) putting you in a Chapter 13.

References: USTP Allowances for National Car Ownership Expense $471/month... https://www.justice.gov/ust/eo/bapcp...xp_Stds_WE.htm