Help - atty wants us to reaffirm Best Buy purchases

[syd74]

We are filing on Friday, and the attorney (well, actually the legal assistant who did the signing appointment with us today) told us we should reaffirm the refrigerator and Macbook Pro we owe Best Buy for. We currently owe them $2000. We bought the fridge as a floor model toward the end of 2011, and the computer in April of this year.

The assistant (the type that has been "doing this for 25 years" or whatever) held up a checklist of our options (reaffirm, redeem, or surrender) and said that we should not mess with a company that hires lawyers (ie., Bass and Associates) just to deal with bk issues.

She wants us to reaffirm for "fair market value" and is starting the negotiations at $1200. She says they will counter.

We don't want to enter our new lives with more than $1200 of debt on our plates. Please help -- what are our options? I can't imagine that Bass and Associates will want a used refrigerator, but maybe they'd take my laptop! I do need it for work. Will it be worth it for them to jump through the legal hoops to take it from me? Is there an option other than reaffirm or surrender? If we choose "surrender" do we then automatically have to surrender the goods?

By the way, she says we have to do this because it is actually a secured debt. I looked this up, and it seems this is true.

Thanks for any help you can give!

[TheBajan]

Personally, I would not. Especially for $1200. I wouldn't pay more than $50 for a used laptop nor more than $300 for a "top of the line" used fridge. I can't imagine that Best Buy will want either of them back but even if they do, go for your fresh start... that's what this whole process is about. Both of those things are still replaceable.

It boils down to this, you are going to gamble regardless of the decision you make on this. Best Buy can whoop and holler and make a lot of threats about coming to pick up the stuff in an effort to convince you to sign. If you sign, you're stuck with the bill on two items that are not worth $1200 (I don't care how nice the fridge and laptop are, they are still used electronics and appliances). If you don't sign, the worst case scenario is that they make good on their threats and they come get their things. You are not obligated to deliver them or even to make them picking them up an easy matter.

If it were me, I would not sign. I would have a contingency plan in case they do come to get them, and I would keep in mind that it's just stuff. It can be repurchased if needed and then I would move on with my life.

Just my two cents....

The Bajan

[Drazil65]

Hi and welcome, search for stories on this forum regarding Best Buy and you will see that they can be very aggressive. It is secure debt and they can repo on secured property. For $2,000 owed they will probably go after it, if it were me I would either settle with them when appropriate (after they counter) and pay it off based on the new figure or tell them to come get the stuff. Then just get a used or much cheaper fridge. YOu may be able to settle on the laptop for a fair price and then turn in the fridge, not sure how they will work it. But for me it would not be worth the fight or the money to keep the stuff. Good Luck.

[Floridagail]

It is not worth their time to come after anything.

[Pizza]

Be sure to make a complete backup of all info on the laptop! I would offer to surrender both. Call their bluff. They would be taking the stuff back at a loss. There's no logical reason for them to pursue it.

[keepsmiling]

I cannot recall even ONE instance of BB and Bass/Ass making good on all their huffing and puffing.
Let it go, tell the assistant to pound sand, and whatever you do... do NOT offer to bring them the goods.
Make it difficult for them and you have an excellent chance that they will go away.
do be smart and have backup as mentioned above... always a good idea anyway.
Keep us posted!

[ld2366eh]

Best buy was listed as unsecured on my chapter 7 petition. We owe them around 3500 with interest. We aren't discharged yet ( hopefully end of Jan.) but we haven't heard a peep from them yet.

[stray]

I agree, backup the laptop right away. Don't get into a bidding war with them over the value. Macs hold their value very well, so they may claim that it's still worth close to what you paid you for it. (check everymac.com for values) Back it up, let them come get it or not. If they come, then at least its better to pay for a newer model.

[LadyInTheRed]

Just to add to the chorus: Don't reafirm. I have yet to hear of Best Buy comming to pick up assets. That said, if you do not reaffirm you should accept and prepare for the possibility that you may have to give up the refrigerator and compter. And if you do have to give them up, be sure to let us know so we can tell future people with this question that we now know of one person who had to give up assets to Best Buy.

Also, regardless of how long this "assistant" has been doing this, if you ever doubt her advice, talk to the lawyer. Only the lawyer is qualified to give you legal advice. It is irresponsible for her to tell you that you have to reaffirm a debt. Nobody is ever required to reaffirm a debt. You just need to understand the possible consequences of not reaffirming.

[goon]

I would add to make sure you have an ice chest handy and a couple dollars for ice, just in case they do come pick it up (doubt it) you don't want to lose any of the food... ( guess this depends on how much you have in your fridge/freezer.

[goon]

oh and if you do have to replace the fridge, Craigslist is your friend

[tobee43]

ditto everyone!!

go tell your atty they can sign the affirmation. where do they come from???

goon! good one, i found some GREAT stuff to furnish our house!

[goon]

Since we were talking about craigslist going to give away a little secret....

Best way to find deals on CL for stuff like appliances.... Think of the most screwed up ways you can to spell something, and search for that.
Very often I have found ads where someone very badly misspelled something, so no one was responding, it has been posted for a while and now since you are the one person that found the ad and called they are willing to take significantly less than they were asking.

(this is also why when I post something for sale I include a list of keywords which includes misspellings of what I am selling)

[tobee43]

LOL!! maybe that's why i was so successful finding stuff! it's really more my typing than spelling...okay, maybe a bit of both

[goon]

LOL!! maybe that's why i was so successful finding stuff! it's really more my typing than spelling...okay, maybe a bit of both

I'm with you ;) how do you think I discovered the trick