I have been reading a lot in this forum lately, and I must say that there is a lot of helpful information here. I have a few questions and concerns about my situation. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
I am single and I am planning on filing Ch. 7 in the next couple of months and I will need to consult with an attorney very soon. I have about $38,000 in total unsecured CC debt, $21,000 on one card and $17,000 on another card. I have been carrying most of this debt for over five years.
I have not charged more than a few hundred dollars a month to these cards over the past six months. I have been making the monthly minimum payments to these cards, but I want to stop making payments beginning with the payment that is due in early April.
I was employed in a customer support job for a computer software company for the last several years until I quit in September 2007. I quit because my health was deteriorating due to the high stress of my job, and was aggravating my thyroid condition. My salary at the time I quit was $60,000.
In 2006 I had started a side business to make money in internet marketing. Up until September 2007 I was only able to work part time on the business and I had lost about $3000 on the business. When I quit my job in September 2007, my intention was to work full time on my internet marketing business and replace my income. Unfortunately I have not been able to make a profit from my business yet.
I hope that the fact that I quit a $60,000 a year job for health reasons, and I then worked at my own business full time since September 2007 without making profit, will not be seen as fraud or abuse.
I have been living off of savings and I had cashed out my 401k in early January 2008. The 401k had federal and state taxes were withheld, so I only got $10,700 direct deposited into my checking account. In late February 2008 I stopped using my credit cards, because I realized that I may need to file bankruptcy.
If I file Ch. 7 in late April I will have six months of no wages, a net loss from my business, and only the $10,700 401k cash out as income. So this would put me under the income median for the median test in my state.
I have cut back drastically on my business expenses and I will be implementing a new strategy that I hope will bring in about $500 to $1000 a month by the end of April.
I am renting an apartment, so I am hoping that filing bankruptcy will allow me to break my lease. I will need to move out of my apartment and move in with my parents out of state after I file bankruptcy. I know that I will need to inform my attorney and the court of my change in address.
My concern is that if I move in with my parents after I file, then my expenses will be reduced to the point where I might have more than $100 a month in disposable income.
If necessary, I may be able to stay in my apartment until after the 341 meeting, but that would cost me more money than I would like to pay. I am expecting that in late April, after paying my attorney, I will have about $5000 in cash, which I plan to keep as part of my unused homestead exemption.
Will the US trustee ask me about my reduction in expenses at the 341 meeting? Does the means test apply in Ch. 7 if expenses are reduced after filing but before the 341 meeting? Would this reduction in expenses after filing Ch. 7 cause me not to be able to stay a chapter 7? Would it be considered abuse?
I am single and I am planning on filing Ch. 7 in the next couple of months and I will need to consult with an attorney very soon. I have about $38,000 in total unsecured CC debt, $21,000 on one card and $17,000 on another card. I have been carrying most of this debt for over five years.
I have not charged more than a few hundred dollars a month to these cards over the past six months. I have been making the monthly minimum payments to these cards, but I want to stop making payments beginning with the payment that is due in early April.
I was employed in a customer support job for a computer software company for the last several years until I quit in September 2007. I quit because my health was deteriorating due to the high stress of my job, and was aggravating my thyroid condition. My salary at the time I quit was $60,000.
In 2006 I had started a side business to make money in internet marketing. Up until September 2007 I was only able to work part time on the business and I had lost about $3000 on the business. When I quit my job in September 2007, my intention was to work full time on my internet marketing business and replace my income. Unfortunately I have not been able to make a profit from my business yet.
I hope that the fact that I quit a $60,000 a year job for health reasons, and I then worked at my own business full time since September 2007 without making profit, will not be seen as fraud or abuse.
I have been living off of savings and I had cashed out my 401k in early January 2008. The 401k had federal and state taxes were withheld, so I only got $10,700 direct deposited into my checking account. In late February 2008 I stopped using my credit cards, because I realized that I may need to file bankruptcy.
If I file Ch. 7 in late April I will have six months of no wages, a net loss from my business, and only the $10,700 401k cash out as income. So this would put me under the income median for the median test in my state.
I have cut back drastically on my business expenses and I will be implementing a new strategy that I hope will bring in about $500 to $1000 a month by the end of April.
I am renting an apartment, so I am hoping that filing bankruptcy will allow me to break my lease. I will need to move out of my apartment and move in with my parents out of state after I file bankruptcy. I know that I will need to inform my attorney and the court of my change in address.
My concern is that if I move in with my parents after I file, then my expenses will be reduced to the point where I might have more than $100 a month in disposable income.
If necessary, I may be able to stay in my apartment until after the 341 meeting, but that would cost me more money than I would like to pay. I am expecting that in late April, after paying my attorney, I will have about $5000 in cash, which I plan to keep as part of my unused homestead exemption.
Will the US trustee ask me about my reduction in expenses at the 341 meeting? Does the means test apply in Ch. 7 if expenses are reduced after filing but before the 341 meeting? Would this reduction in expenses after filing Ch. 7 cause me not to be able to stay a chapter 7? Would it be considered abuse?
Comment