Questions concerning two paid off cars on a 7

[john_smith]

Which value do you use from the blue book?
Kelly Blue Book lists 3 values for my car:
Trade in ($1400), Private Party ($2535), and Suggested Retail ($3660).

[tinfoilhat]

Which value do you use from the blue book?
Kelly Blue Book lists 3 values for my car:
Trade in ($1400), Private Party ($2535), and Suggested Retail ($3660).

Honestly it's whatever your trustee feels like using.

I've been told on here to use kbb retail, and kbb private sale, and kbb trade in, and all three averaged, and nada yellow, and nada black, and edmunds, and private appraisal, and carmax, and there were probably a few others.

A few attorneys told me a few different methods.

The attorney I'm using now told me I can value my car however I want to but the trustee can ignore it entirely and make me bring the car to his/her wholesaler to have them value it.

Makes perfect sense to me because the trustees wholesaler is the person who would be selling it and handing over the money to the trustee.

My attorney asked me what my vehicles are worth and I told him, he asked how I came up with the number and I said kbb trade in. He said the trustee might ask how I came up with the value also and suggested I simply say kelly blue book, nothing else unless asked to be specific.

[tinfoilhat]

Thanks, good luck to you too... Our Kia was rearended so we have a repaired car that probably is not worth the book value ... so we shall see

You might benefit from a carfax, although I've personally owned wrecked vehicles that have a clean carfax. And if you have a carmax dealer nearby an appraisal might help.

Again the trustee might not even look at any of that so....it might be a waste or it might not.

[momisery]

I guess the car fax would be worth a try... Thanks..

[lafrteacher]

It really sucks to live in a state where you end up having assets in a chapter 7. Louisiana is really tight on exemptions; I couldn't exempt my second vehicle, computer, tv's, dvd's, vcr. I have to buy it all back. I'm envious of all of you in no-asset cases!

At least the trustee is letting us pay in 3 payments.
I am grateful that our chapter 7 is going smoothly; we have a fair trustee who saw that we were being honest about everything.