Filing Chapter 7

[babygirl_76]

hey everyone .. I'm in the starts of filing a ch. 7 bankruptcy. When I had my consultation with the attorney.. it was a pretty quick consult. I seriously mean like 5 minutes and i was out of there. He asked if I owned my own home, I told him I was buying it contract for deed.. then he asked about my vehicle. I told him I was buying that and that my payoff was 13.710. He said I could file chapter 7. Told me what the fees would be, that I had to do the credit counseling and that it would take about 6 months from beginning to end.

What I'm wanting to know... he told me that I would be able to keep the car. Will I have to keep making payments on it? I am up to date on my payments and auto insurance, but I just didnt know how that played out. If anyone could help me, I'd really appreciate it. THanks!!!

[KKAB]

Definitely keep current on your car payments if you want to keep it! If not, stop the payments and they will eventually come and get it. If you are continuing with the payments get a mailing address as the company will most likely not let you make online payments. Also, you might think about talking to another attorney- two or three visits you learn a lot...good luck!

[sunshine mary]

wow 5 minutes ! Mine was an hour and a half with the attorney I chose. I had a total of 4 consults and none were 5 minutes they were more like 30 minutes or more. I would also recommend you speak with 4 or 5. If your keeping your car you need to keep making the payments on time and also the insurance. There is something called 722 redemption that you can use while in a CH 7 where you pay the market value for your car not the amount you owe and they refinance the market value price for a pretty hefty interest rate like 25% I think...You have to call and see if it's in your best interest to do that or not..I am currently doing it because it will knock almost 6K off the loan amount and even with the high interest rate I will save 100 plus on my monthly payment..This has been my experience.

[babygirl_76]

man.. if I could knock off that 100 a month... that would help me out soo m uch. between my house payment, car payment then all my utilities, I DO NOT have enough to live on from paycheck to paycheck. I'm a single mom to 3 kids and it takes EVERYTHING I have .. so anything would be better than nothing.

[Cali]

Our consults were anywhere from 30-1 hour.

If you can afford the car after you file BK, then keep it. But if the payment will still cause hardship, let it go.

We have 2 vehicles and are current on them both, were were going to keep both but have changed our mind and will only keep one.

Good luck to you!

[Phillymanhere]

Yeah, I met with a number of attorneys and they all were 30 minutes to an hour. I met with an attorney who is a trustee and he gave me a very thorough hour of time.
Definitely get to some more attorneys to see what they say. I once called an attorney to set up a meeting, and within minutes the guy is trying to get me to bring in a down payment without at all having heard the details of my case. When I told him, I wanted to do more research, consult with some trusted friends, etc., before making a final decision, he got angry at me.
I hung up the phone and said to myself, "shyster."
Not saying your guy was that. But get to some more lawyers.
good luck.

[lrprn]

man.. if I could knock off that 100 a month... that would help me out soo m uch.

What the lawyer meant is that the bankruptcy exemptions in your state will protect the equity in your car if you file Ch 7.

In order to keep the car after filing, then you must continue to pay the monthly payments and the insurance. The only way to stop making those payments is to surrender the car (give it back to the lender). If you want to keep the car, then you have to keep making the payments and also keep it insured.

between my house payment, car payment then all my utilities, I DO NOT have enough to live on from paycheck to paycheck. I'm a single mom to 3 kids and it takes EVERYTHING I have .. so anything would be better than nothing.

Once you no longer have to pay credit cards and other unsecured payments, if you still can't pay everything that's left, then bankruptcy alone won't help your situation. You have to increase your income, reduce your expenses, or give up a secured asset so you don't have to make the payments any longer. I'm sorry to say there's just no other way.

Are you receiving child support for your three children?