Chapter 7 Asset Case

[IllBeDamned]

I'm a chapter 7 asset case. Filed early June discharged about a week ago. I have had zero contact with the trustee since the 341, in Pacer I'm still listed as assets undetermined, so it seems like the trustee hasn't done much with my case. My lawyer submitted an offer for my house about 60 days ago, since I was over the exemption amount for my state.

Are there any defined timelines that go along with the closing of a case?

Should I push lawyer to get a response from the trustee?

Could someone explain how the process works when paying the trustee for above exemption items?

[justbroke]

There are no defined timelines to close an asset case. I have read of some being open for 2 years to recover and liquidate property of the bankruptcy estate.

You can always ask your attorney for status.

Since you made an offer, I would push the attorney to see if the offer was accepted and the next steps.

[IllBeDamned]

I asked the lawyer to request an update yesterday. Glad I did because I got an update in Pacer, "Trustee's Request for Court to Issue Notice of Probable Assets".

The amount of waiting for unknowns during this process will drive a person crazy. Hopefully I can get my case closed out with out it taking months and months.

[justbroke]

Don't worry about the closing. The discharge is the prize.The closing is an administrative task for the Trustee to be relieved of their duties. Now, when the Trustee and you settle on the amount to keep the home, then you just focus on getting the money to the Trustee. Even then, the Trustee has to set a deadline to file a claims and that would be at least 30 days and possibly 60 days from the notice that the case is an asset case. Then they must figure out the money, distribute checks, and then wait 30-60 days for them to be cased. This means that an asset case typically takes at least 4 months on a good day.

So, bottom line is that you should only worry about getting the Trustee the settlement once that has been set. The rest is administrative. Go on with your life. Don't worry about checks being mailed out.

[IllBeDamned]

The request for a status update got everything moving. My offer was accepted, Motion to Approve Settlement filed, 21 days to contest motion. Claims deadline was set to 90 days.

[justbroke]

So that means that you are at least 120 days to closing. I'm glad the "poke" was enough to get things moving along.