changing costs! two questions

[One Half Full]

I actually don't know how to categorize this but it refers to the list of expenses I need to get ready for my lawyer and the trustee.

Q1) So I have been making on average less than my basic bills. That is, housing, food, utilities, car, gas, etc. Now, for about 3-4 years two of those bills were really higher than they are now, and of course, the fact totally sapped my bank account. My Mortgage was a 590.00 (I live in a "cheap" part of the countrY) and my auto insurance was 99.00 dollars. Now, stangely, 2 months ago, my mortgage dropped to 545.00 and my insurance dropped to 54.00. So-- since most of the year was spent paying the greater costs, when I tell the lawyer what I have been spending on my housing etc., do I use the previous (more expensive) numbers. Obviously the rough # for the savings for both is about 500.00 per year-- that is quite a lot!, but that also means that prior to 2 months ago, I was paying an additional 500.00 on my "basic" living expenses.

Q2) One of the places that I get overwhelmed are sudden "non-regular" bills. These are things like trash, auto licensing fees, and so on. Are these unusual yearly bills accounted for in my estimates of what I spend yearly? I think I always forget them, and they tend to be a few hundred dollars, and then all of a sudden they are due. I generally have to stop paying something like electricity to pay "trash" for instance.

[FreshLikeADaisy]

You know, I don't think you really have to worry too much about question 1, because when it comes right down to the wire, you'll be using the last six months of your income. Even though I & J are somewhat different than the means test and there is room for variation because one is actual and one is estimated, you'll want them to match as much as possible. So it's the last six months, to me. Others may disagree and with good reason, the I & J vs means test isn't very clear at all, that's just my take on it.

The second question... I think that if you made a concerted effort to remember and write down every unexpected bill you've had for the last couple of years that should cover it, and don't skimp on your *actual* costs either. In the end, the fees you're forgetting are on your bk list, just not itemized out -- for example, vehicle registration is under automotive expenses, trash pickup under house expenses, whatever. I'm not being precise but you get the general idea.

I have horrid memory problems and I totally understand how hard it is to remember what you got hit with a year ago, but I have found that if I look over lists of what I am trying to remember -- in your case, lists of expenses -- it will generally come back to me. Also, when you signed your mortgage, did they give you a list of expenses at closing that showed what the buyer and the seller paid? I got one like that and all of those various homeowner expenses were listed out on it, so that may be worth looking at if you have it handy. That, and your check registers for the last two years.

Good luck!!!