Had my 341 - Trustee not happy - what would you do?
Background:
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- Chapter 7 - No Assets (all exempt)
- Unemployed - 4 months now
- Over median on Means Test (used to make good money, so Means Test showed 3 months of high income and 3 months of near zero income due to unemployment)
- Negative DMI on Means Test (about -$100)
- Negative DMI on Schedule J (about -$4,000)
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I had my 341 today and the trustee asked if there had been any changes to my situation since I filed. Being under oath, I told him that after filing I liquidated my exempt IRA to pay for rent, food, etc.
He told me I had "no right to do that" and I simply replied: "Sorry, I did not know."
He wrote down the amount of the withdrawal in his notes.
These funds are now spent (gone to the landlord, food, utilities, insurance, etc.)
What's done is done - seeking guidance on what to do moving forward (and what to likely expect.) I'm not panicked - just wanting to plan accordingly.
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I figure my worst case is that they flip my case to a presumption of abuse - but I am unsure given my totality of circumstances (remember, I have a HUGE negative DMI on Schedule J) how they would go down that route. Also, I can't see them claiming that the money is "income" on my Means Test because the withdrawal happened AFTER the date of filing.
I am also slightly confused why this was a no-no given my hardship. If I had $5,000 in checking that was exempted on the day I filed, and I spent that money after filing and now had $100, would that be a no-no?
If I had $2,000 worth of household items that were exempted and sold $1,000 on eBay after filing to make ends meet, would that be a no-no?
Seems logically unclear as to why liquidating an exempt IRA after filing to pay the bills is a no-no.
I was thinking on the drive home that I could get a gift from my family and redeposit the money into the IRA as I am within the 60 day limit for a "rollover". COULD THIS SOLVE MY PROBLEM, assuming I even have one?
WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU DO, OR PLAN ON DOING, GIVEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES?
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Note that starting with next month, I am going to have to rely on family anyway to make ends meet unless I generate some income.
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On an unrelated note, I was asked if I had a new job offer. I do not and answered such.
I was also asked why I was paying an amount in rent that was above the local standards. Unsure why this was asked because on my Means Test I put an amount that equaled the local standards (a few hundred less) so it should not mean anything on the Means Test. On Schedule J, my rent could be zero and I'd still be well over -$2,000 in DMI, so I don't see why the question was even material given my case. He did not ask another sole a single expense question.
----------------------------------------------------
- Chapter 7 - No Assets (all exempt)
- Unemployed - 4 months now
- Over median on Means Test (used to make good money, so Means Test showed 3 months of high income and 3 months of near zero income due to unemployment)
- Negative DMI on Means Test (about -$100)
- Negative DMI on Schedule J (about -$4,000)
----------------------------------------------------
I had my 341 today and the trustee asked if there had been any changes to my situation since I filed. Being under oath, I told him that after filing I liquidated my exempt IRA to pay for rent, food, etc.
He told me I had "no right to do that" and I simply replied: "Sorry, I did not know."
He wrote down the amount of the withdrawal in his notes.
These funds are now spent (gone to the landlord, food, utilities, insurance, etc.)
What's done is done - seeking guidance on what to do moving forward (and what to likely expect.) I'm not panicked - just wanting to plan accordingly.
----------------------------------------------------
I figure my worst case is that they flip my case to a presumption of abuse - but I am unsure given my totality of circumstances (remember, I have a HUGE negative DMI on Schedule J) how they would go down that route. Also, I can't see them claiming that the money is "income" on my Means Test because the withdrawal happened AFTER the date of filing.
I am also slightly confused why this was a no-no given my hardship. If I had $5,000 in checking that was exempted on the day I filed, and I spent that money after filing and now had $100, would that be a no-no?
If I had $2,000 worth of household items that were exempted and sold $1,000 on eBay after filing to make ends meet, would that be a no-no?
Seems logically unclear as to why liquidating an exempt IRA after filing to pay the bills is a no-no.
I was thinking on the drive home that I could get a gift from my family and redeposit the money into the IRA as I am within the 60 day limit for a "rollover". COULD THIS SOLVE MY PROBLEM, assuming I even have one?
WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU DO, OR PLAN ON DOING, GIVEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES?
----------------------------------------------------
Note that starting with next month, I am going to have to rely on family anyway to make ends meet unless I generate some income.
----------------------------------------------------
On an unrelated note, I was asked if I had a new job offer. I do not and answered such.
I was also asked why I was paying an amount in rent that was above the local standards. Unsure why this was asked because on my Means Test I put an amount that equaled the local standards (a few hundred less) so it should not mean anything on the Means Test. On Schedule J, my rent could be zero and I'd still be well over -$2,000 in DMI, so I don't see why the question was even material given my case. He did not ask another sole a single expense question.
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discharged: 2/22/11
I am soooo totally not a lawyer, but i wish i had married one! Does that count for anything?
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