Credit Card Statement Question >>>>>

[LaidOff53]

I am gathering all my CC statements & bank statements for my consult with a BK attorney and was wondering how far i should go back ? I have read that you cannot charge over 500 per card within a 90 day period and no cash amounts within a 70 days period before you file, do guys find that to be true ? Or do they look back longer than that ? we hit our discover card pretty hard in Nov & Dec ( approx 3500 ) to pay our school taxes this yr ,Also we have 2 chase cards and have spent around 300 per card for gas & groceries in Nov & dec as well , and under 100 on a couple others . how long should i wait to file ?

[JRScott]

To be on the safe side get 6 months worth. Generally you won't need em that far back but the more you have the better in case you do get audited.

[jribe]

i would go back two years on all cc statements that you can print online. after you stip paying- they will disable your online access so you can't print anything. you'll be up the creek without a paddle if the trustee ends up auditing your case and they want 2 years... i doubt that the cc company would be very helpful in providing statements that far back when you're filing and not paying them. it's always better to be on the safe side...

[LaidOff53]

Holy Cow !! 2 years ? you really think they will go back that far ? current bankruptcy law says no luxury purchases within the last 90 days over 500.00 and no cash advances over 750 in the last 70 days . why would they say that if they can go back 2 years ? we will pass the means test and we are current on our mortgage ( 128,000 ) and credit cards( 50,000 ) having never been late on anything but my husband got laid off 4 months ago and we know we cant keep paying everything , Its a struggle now. we really want to get rid of the CC's and just keep the house . Our cars are like 8 & 9 years old and paid for . It pains me to even consider bankruptcy but the CC's are doubling our interest rates and lowering the credit lines on the cards and the only reason i can see is that we are just making the min now , we have always had high CC debit but have always paid them with no problem , but now with the payments doubling they are making it impossible for us to keep up . the jobs here in PA are few and what there is out there is paying half per hour of what my husband has been making for the last 24 years at the same employer ( steel industry ) . so we know that even if he gets a job soon at a lower wage we will not be able to afford to keep paying the sky high cards with my income alone. The reason why we are still making the mortgage & CC payments each month is that we want to speak to a BK attorney first and make sure he feels there is a pretty good chance that we can keep the house, if not then we will not file and get 2 jobs each because we just have to keep the house , we have no where else to go ! Rent here is approx the same as we are paying a month for mortgage. This whole thing has us freaked out . At 53 and hubby having no job plus a bankruptcy who would ever give us a mortgage. I am trying to learn all i can before we stop paying the cards cause once we do that there is no going back . Our lives being turned upside down at this point in our life has me crazy !! I know that everyone here is also stressed beyond their limits . Im glad i found this message board as i am learning something new everyday !! Plus it makes me feel like i may have a tiny bit of control over my life with which is spinning out of control !!

[StartingOver08]

Download all your online statments just in case.

It varies drastically from district to district how much information you have to provide. I had to provide 2 yrs bank statements, 4 yrs tax returns, 3 yrs cc statments and 1 yr utilities, 10 yrs real estate purchases (deeds and mortgage info) etc, etc.

You may not need to provide as much information.

But, because you get cut off from your online access fairly quickly when you get behind and instantly when you file BK, it is best to go to each account while you have access and just download all the documentation to your hard drive. When you get ready to file, just print off the statements requested.

If you get in a situation like poor Jessiegirl, where the Trustee asked for all the documentation and she could not provide it - then you have big issues.
She can't even get the credit card companies to provide it after writing for the statements - its been a mess. Look up her posts. You do not want that situation.

[LaidOff53]

Thanks starting - i will download all i can , but some only have the last 5 months worth . also i was curious were you over the means test amount ? I am trying to figure out if maybe being under the means and being laid off the trustee wont scruitinize us to the max ? Anyone out there from around Pittsburgh Pa with any tips or info abut their chapter 7 experiences ?

[StartingOver08]

Yes, I was over median income. Also self employed. Also filing alone Ch 7 (yet I am married). Also filed on $1 M of debt....that may explain why the US Trustee was interested in my case!

Really, the documentation aspect is different for every district. Look up Jessiegirl, she didn't have any of my issues and yet had to supply loads of documents too.

[LaidOff53]

i went back and read jessiegirls posts and OMG what a mess !!!! Im going to my CC's now and downloading everything i can get my hands on !!! Thanks