Is 2nd job a bad idea?

[ironman1964]

I am going to have to file chpt 7 in a few months and I was wondering if taking on a 2nd job will give me too much income/debt. Right now, my expenses equal my debt, but if I take this other job my income will be about $700/month more than my expenses. I was told that as long my income stays below my state's mean test that I could file chpt 7. Is that true or does my expenses have to stay higher than my income to be able to file chpt 7 also?

The reason for the 2nd job will be to save some money for a lawyer plus some other necessities. Would I be better off saving money by stopping payment on all of my credit cards (I am current now) instead of taking on a 2nd job?

[keepmine]

Even if your income is below the median for your state, if you have some disposable income you may be pushed into a 13.
If you realy are going to file, I'd suggest you stop paying all creditors you intend to discharge.
Have spoken with an attorney yet?

[SinkingFast]

It is my understanding that being below the Median only gives you a "Free Pass" to Ch 7 as far as Creditors are concerned. Meaning Creditors cannot object to you filing a Ch 7.

Getting passed the Panel Trustee, the US Trustee, and the BK Court Judge may be an entirely different story. Any one of those people could object to your Ch 7 and push you into a 13 if you can pay back 10% of your total unsecured debt over 5 years. Even if you are below the Median, if you have disposable income, the Court could order you into a Ch 13.

That's my understanding.

The Means Test and Median Income are screening tools. Not "Get Out of Jail Free" cards.

The revisions in the Tactical BK Manual seem to back up that line of thought.

[ironman1964]

No, I haven't spoke to a lawyer yet but I will be in the next couple of weeks.

The funny thing about this 2nd job I was going to take was that I was going to pay down my credit cards with it. Then I noticed that I am paying so much interest on 3 different cc's that an extra $700/month really will not give me the results that I want. Despite never missing a payment or even being late once, they still have continued to up my interest to the high 20's%. B of A bought out 2 of my cc accounts and immediately my interest went from 9.9%-24% for no reason. I guess it would be stupid to take on a 2nd job and kill myself 70 hours a week to try to pay these vultures off when I can just file ch 7.

I also can't transfer balances to a lower rate card because my income is low enough that new cc's will usually only give me a balance of $500-$1000.

I have cc debt of about $15,000, which I could pay back no problem if they would be reasonable. The problem is I have talked and begged with them all and being reasonable is not one of their options.

I have had 2 of my cc's for 7 years, so I have paid them back probably 2 or 3 times what I owe already, so I won't be feeling any guilt at all when I file.

I appreciate the advice. I will hold off on the 2nd job.

[Jenny]

Bankrate.com has calculators that can figure out how long it takes to pay off credit card debt. I plugged in some of the numbers you provided, and it looks like you could pay it all off in a few years.

$15,000 credit card debt
24% Interest
$700 a month in payments

Payoff period: 29 months (just a little over 2 years)

I know you're probably angry with the credit card companies for raising your rates, but filing bankruptcy is a pretty drastic step just to get even. And you know that they don't care about you or your debt anyway. You'd just be ruining your credit for nothing.

[keepmine]

Don't file over $15K. Quit using the cards and take that 2nd job and pay 'em off.

[SinkingFast]

I think I'd agree.

Take the 2nd job. Pay the payments. Don't file BK.

Put another Zero behind your debt and your talking a whole different story.

That's where we are.

[djk]

debt is relative to income. if ironman makes less than 20 grand a year then 15 grand of debt is quite a bit. another variable is age. and I'd also consider the lifestyle you see yourself leading 10 years out. health is an issue also, if working 70 hours a week may cause problems. if you are a low income worker and project yourself to be in that bracket filing is a strong option.