New Here! A couple questions

[Mama2LNJ]

We are preparing to file for bankruptcy (ch 7) soon. We had a small business that has failed along with credit card debt and medical bills. I have no job, my husband is starting a great job with housing in three weeks. Here are my questions!

1. We had a phone consultation with an attorney last week. We scheduled a meeting with him on Monday afternoon. I asked what the meeting was for and they said it was an "intent to file" meeting and I would get a packet in the mail.
What does that mean? Will my creditors be notified then?

2. We are leaving our property at the end of the month. We will have some significant utility bills that will be coming due in August. I know we can discharge what we are past due on as of right now but what about what we are currently incurring? We will remove our names from the utilities as of the day we move. Can I still discharge those bills? There is no WAY we can afford to pay those once we leave. We will have new utilites to pay at our new house. And we wont be debt free from filing. We still have some back taxes to pay. I asked the lawyer over the phone about bills that would come in after we closed our business and he said not to worry about it. But I'm still nervous

3. Has anyone ever negotiated with a creditor to pay the bill? We have our tax prep bills and one tax return is not finished. We have to take the two bills we already have (for our LLC's) to the lawyer but want to pay our personal tax prep so he will finish our return. What is the best course of action?

I am a total mess. I cannot eat or sleep. I am on pretty powerful anxiety meds. I cry constantly. I have two little kids and feel like the world is coming to an end. Please help with my questions. Thanks!

[Mama2LNJ]

Also, I have to discharge debts for our business verizon phone line because they are past due. I do not want to discharge debts for our verizon wireless accounts however. Will they charge me a deposit b/c the two companies are connected or am I safe? We have never been behind with our verizon wireless bills and have been a customer with them for over five years.
There is so much stuff that is so scary.

[SMinGA]

#1 - depends on the attorney and how they do things. Not quite sure what will be involved. Creditors though won't be notified until you file.

#2 - assuming your old utility bills are final before you file, they can be included.

#3 - I believe all tax years will need to have been filed before you can ch. 7. Payment for ongoing services is not the same as payment for services already rendered. Your tax prep company can refuse to complete the returns without payment. So you may need to pay up for them to file the returns so that you can file bankruptcy.

[SMinGA]

If the accounts are connected, you may not be able to keep one and unload the other. Perhaps look to open a new wireless account now, transfer your #s, and be done with Verizon? Not certain, but that may be the best alternative.

Also, I have to discharge debts for our business verizon phone line because they are past due. I do not want to discharge debts for our verizon wireless accounts however. Will they charge me a deposit b/c the two companies are connected or am I safe? We have never been behind with our verizon wireless bills and have been a customer with them for over five years.
There is so much stuff that is so scary.

[SMinGA]

ps on the attorney....

Its best to meet with several, ask questions, and ultimately decide who you wish to hire. DO NOT let yourself be pushed into paying a retainer and hiring an attorney before you are ready.

[brokejoker]

I'm a newbie too and I don't really have any idea about the bills you are currently incurring or about the tax stuff but I think I can help you out in the meeting.

i met with my lawyer to discuss the possibility of BK. He explained the different kinds and gave me a packet of papers listing what information I needed and the fees for filing. At our pre-filing I brought in the documents on the list (all creditors, all assets, what we wanted to keep, pay stubs, papers for the pending lawsuits, etc.) and sat down with the paralegal who was going to be doing the paperwork. It was a really short meeting since the list from the attorney was detailed and I am a little OCD about stuff so I made up spreadsheets for everything. It just felt really good to have a plan of action so I dove in!

It took about two days from the pre-filing meeting for our lawyer to file electronically for us.

Take a deep breath! There is a ton of information on this site so use the search feature to your heart's content. Just think, 6 months from now this will all be over and you will be able to sleep at night again.

[Mama2LNJ]

Thank you for your help!