big unsecured debt payments and switching banks?

[eventsdj]

We have a personal loan for 33,000 that we currently pay $600 a month on. We are up to date, how long before we file should we stop paying on it.
Can we even file if we are not late on our bills, or do we need to stop paying them and file in a few months... thats a hard pill!

We have a couple cc's through Chase, which is also where we bank. Do we need to switch banks? Once we file, can they access our accounts?

Thanks!

[aljohnson007]

Change your bank and remove all but a few dollars. If you don't and are late on a payment, they will off-set from your account.

[liz417]

You can remain current on your bills if you want, I stopped paying a year before I filed, so I have a lot of charge-offs and late payments that will never come off my credit report. Some posters remained current and file right after, this enabled them to "rebound" their credit score more quickly after discharge.

Also, I bank with WaMu (now Chase) and had a 26k debt with Chase. Although my attorney told me to switch banks to be on the safe side, I procrastinated and didn't switch until I was like 6-8 months late on the payments to Chase. They never took anything out of my accounts. I still would recommend that you switch banks...just in case

Good Luck!