Please help me spend this money.....$50k

[gonein60]

I am planning for BK, and was going to file in March. But my company was bought out and I was left with about $50k in money that has fell in my lap as a result, this is additional money to my income.

I consulted with my attorney who says we cannot use it to pay down my mortgage (florida), which is unfortunate as I was hoping to get a better interest rate and it would have really been nice.

He says just spend it, live your life. That's not so easy. Obviously this is going to push my BK out, but I don't know that I can come up with the smartest things for this. Some will have to go to items that may get taken, there is nothing I can do about that. Some things I thought of:

medical (my wife was thinking of breast reduction surgery for example)
vacation (a regular vacation)
lawyer ( I still owe him $4k)
pet medical (need annuals plus grooming)
education (maybe wife gets some education in a skill?)
repairs (wifes car needs brakes)
pre-pay insurance premiums?
prescription sunglasses
clothes (some new suits, shirts, etc, not sure how much I could go here without it being a problem)
x-mas, b-day gifts (he said no more than $200 to any single person)

Please any advise, help me think of things, it really sucks that I can't do anything with this meaningful. Its not enough to bring me out of BK, so even if I paid 100% of it to creditors it would still leave me in a situation where I need to file.

Signal

Wish I had 50k laying around. I'm jealous, give it to me and I'll put it to good use. How much debt do you have, and if u have that kind of cash laying around, why go BK?

[gonein60]

This post pisses me off. I mean I would not have even considered filing if I had 50k to put into my responsabilities.

Sounds like compete abuse and scummy.

Your are talking about 100% FRAUD and I really hope it comes back to bite you in the ASS.

Ur right, i would of paid the dirt bag creditors back if i had that kind of cash laying around. BK wrecks ur credit, use the 50k to pay ur debts and save ur credit man.

[gonein60]

I disagree with you, strongly.

50k, in the face, of say, 400k or so in debt (or more), would not help a bit. In fact, it would be wasteful to try to use it in the face of a large amount of debt.

Circumstances are relative, and because that seems a large sum to you, or me, or anyone, does not make it a windfall capable of changing the OP's situation to a large enough degree to be considered fraudulent.

Fraud is a specific legal term. It has a strict definition that only applies in a narrow set of conditions. None of the OP's statements suggest this is fraudulent. Quite the opposite. I believe in planning for BK as much as I believe in planning for tomorrow.

If there are legal reasons for spending this money, and the purchases are within the law, it is not fraud. It is the consumer using the law as effectively as creditors do.

Posts like yours irritate the heck out of me. You seem to be saying, "It is OK for creditors to use every ounce of legal maneuvering to gain from the debtor. BUT it is NOT OK for the debtor to do the same."

Hogwash.

I guess we will disagree, which is fine.

True, but we don't know how much debt he's in. If it's 50k then pay it back.

[NHC]

Wish I had 50k laying around. I'm jealous, give it to me and I'll put it to good use. How much debt do you have, and if u have that kind of cash laying around, why go BK?

I dunno about anyone else but 50k would wipe out ALL my debt and leave a tidy little sum to put into an IRA or a CD.....

[DeadManCrawling]

I dunno about anyone else but 50k would wipe out ALL my debt and leave a tidy little sum to put into an IRA or a CD.....

I actually envy you. 50k would not even touch the interest on what I owe.

[wickedlate]

You people that are bashing this guy for having 50K and filing need to get on with your life and realize that even millionaires go bankrupt. 50K is a lot of money to people that have never had money or owned a business but for people that are lucky enough to have a 6 or 7 figure job or business 50K is not much money when you owe hundreds of thousands to banks for operating expenses or a home that was affordable until this economy took a shit.


Lighten up and don't judge anyone unless you have walked in their shoes.

[Ineedhelp2]

I didn't know you couldn't pay down a mortgage with the cash.

If I had your "problem" I would do the following:

Being self-employed, I would do a huge direct mail campaign and spend $15,000 on that, which would get rid of a huge chunk of it, but also bring in lots of new business that I would do after the bankruptcy. Heck, I could probably spend it all on that if I wanted to, and I would eventually get it back in the form of jobs.

I would spend the limits on what I could as far as business items I need.

Is there some rule that says you can only buy so much food? If not, I would buy a year's supply of food, if I knew I was going to be in the house for a year. That could use up $5,000 to $10,000.

I would buy a new wardrobe.

I would do some sneaky and devious things like go on a trip and somehow make it look like I spent a lot of cash, and hide some in my mattress--about $10k, but I didn't really say that...

I would give $5,000 to charity. If I had the money in time for Christmas, would play Santa and buy toys and items for people in need in my community.

I would get all the dental work done that I might otherwise be willing to put up with, such as implants and bridges, and that could easily be $5,000 to $10,000.

If you have any kind of business or side venture, I think that's the key. That's where the money could go...

[keepmine]

True, but we don't know how much debt he's in. If it's 50k then pay it back.

Since you're new here, you should have read some of Signals old posts.
He owes a healthy multiple of $50K.

[NHC]

I actually envy you. 50k would not even touch the interest on what I owe.

I'll be honest here....98% of my debt comes from Medical. I never have had nor will I ever have any credit cards. I used to be in the Navy and I saw a lot of young sailors get themselves in over their heads with them so I decided I was not going to give myself the opportunity to be in that position. I have for the most part run on cash.....with the exception of my car loan. Even my landlord thinks it's funny that I pay her with money orders. I pay my insurance and cell phone online so I probably write 2 checks a year. If I ain't got the cash, it ain't happenin!!!

I've been trying to pay on these medical bills for 2 years....but the ambulance company's CA wants this much....some specialist sent me to collections because he saw me in the ER for 3 minutes....another wants this much...and that doesn't even touch the bill for 3 days in the ICU.....that was 24k alone....and that's with insurance. I've paid what I could (kinda sporatically though - I'm a single mom with no child support) but it's just not enough for these people.....so...here I am.....

[backtoschool]

There is not a hierarchy of bankruptcies where some people have "better" or more "just" bankruptcies. We are ALL insolvent when we file for bankruptcy.

50k is not a lot of money when there is a lot of debt. But that being said, 50k, IS a lot of money to a trustee. 50k is NOT however enough money to postpone a bankruptcy indefinitely over.

Sometimes letting go could be the right answer. Moving on and having a fresh start is just as important as holding onto that money because it's "yours" and you "deserve" it, in my opinion.

[NHC]

There is not a hierarchy of bankruptcies where some people have "better" or more "just" bankruptcies. We are ALL insolvent when we file for bankruptcy.

50k is not a lot of money when there is a lot of debt. But that being said, 50k, IS a lot of money to a trustee. 50k is NOT however enough money to postpone a bankruptcy indefinitely over.

Sometimes letting go could be the right answer. Moving on and having a fresh start is just as important as holding onto that money because it's "yours" and you "deserve" it, in my opinion.

I couldn't agree more.....

[mommyof3kids]

Are you planning on keeping the house?

If so I would look at all the home improvements with tax incentives even. Especially if the trustee won't touch your taxes. We are renting the house we are in currently (live in FL). However if we owned it and had to spend $50K I would buy the best solar panel system $50K could get me that way I spent it like I needed to but then not have a power bill down the road. Actually I would also had a pool since our rental doesnt LOL.

Why take a vacation? Do what ever you need to to make your home the oasis. Oh I would also buy the whole home package of the robot vaccum systems. Since your wife has carpatunnel you could easily argue it is neccessary. Their is one for vaccuming, one for floor washing, one for vaccuming the garage or porch, one for the pool.

Yep dh and I could easily spend the $50K LOL.

Oh I would also buy a few thousand of gift cards for groceries and gas maybe $5K for groceries and $3K for gas.

Tammy

[LimpDisc]

Ur right, i would of paid the dirt bag creditors back if i had that kind of cash laying around. BK wrecks ur credit, use the 50k to pay ur debts and save ur credit man.

Seriously? You call the creditors dirtbags, but you want him to fork over 50k if it's avoidable?

[aces67]

If you're keeping your home see what repairs need to be done on it and how much they will cost you. If there's anything medically related that you've been putting off do it now.

How much debt do you have exactly?

[gonein60]

I'll be honest here....98% of my debt comes from Medical. I never have had nor will I ever have any credit cards. I used to be in the Navy and I saw a lot of young sailors get themselves in over their heads with them so I decided I was not going to give myself the opportunity to be in that position. I have for the most part run on cash.....with the exception of my car loan. Even my landlord thinks it's funny that I pay her with money orders. I pay my insurance and cell phone online so I probably write 2 checks a year. If I ain't got the cash, it ain't happenin!!!

I've been trying to pay on these medical bills for 2 years....but the ambulance company's CA wants this much....some specialist sent me to collections because he saw me in the ER for 3 minutes....another wants this much...and that doesn't even touch the bill for 3 days in the ICU.....that was 24k alone....and that's with insurance. I've paid what I could (kinda sporatically though - I'm a single mom with no child support) but it's just not enough for these people.....so...here I am.....

Sorry to hear about ur plight. I work in the medical field, and I run into patients like u from time to time. One patient i had was a millionaire at one time, but after multiple divorces and medical issues from auto accidents and other things he was completely broke and $200,000 in medical debt. Poor guy, i felt bad for him u know.

What's crazy is people i work around, some who have chosen not to have health ins. so they can get payed a higher wage, and others who decided to get the cheapest coverage with their employer that they can. 2 huge mistakes, i even know one guy who's on worker's comp and refuses to buy medical ins. he says " i'm healthy so why do i need medical or dental ins." absolute lunacy to go without coverage. My company offers excellent medical, dental, and vision, and i chose the best one in each category. Has already saved me a ton of money. Insane to go without medical coverage these days, i feel for people who don't have any.