Question Vacation?

[wikkibird]

Alright, second post... I have a dilemma and of course my lawyer is taking forever to get back to me on this. *sigh* So, I had planned a trip months ago that I had saved for that is scheduled to happen January 6th through 10th (so next week and I'm going alone, because we cannot afford both my spouse and I going). My issue is that we are supposed to file on Tuesday, the 4th (it should've been today). I'm emotionally and morally torn (should I be?) about this... You see, I planned this about 6 months ago when we WERE paying to several law firms to prevent garnishments and we know that once we declare bankruptcy, all "fun" stuff goes out the window. The plane tickets were purchased (non refundable) as well as tickets for the play I'm seeing (also non refundable) from our income (not credit - ha!) months and month ago. So, my only cost next week will be for my share of the hotel, food, and anything else out of my pocket. We stopped using credit cards eons ago, as they are vile and evil and got us into this mess. LOL

I'm concerned and worried that this trip is happening so close to filing and I'm not sure if I should go ahead and file on Tuesday or wait until I get back, so the 11th. I'm totally fine keeping all receipts, showing the Trustee and explaining why (90% of it was prepaid). Shoot, I'll even pay it back to the Trustee as this trip is VERY important to me and I think it will help with my mental sanity. What do ya'll think? If I cancel, three other folks will be really mad at me and one of them is dependent upon me going for her affordability of the trip (splitting costs).

Thanks for the help, I appreciate it!

[Flamingo]

You need to check with your attorney on this one...we cannot give you legal advice as to your particular situation. I would only go by what is advised by your attorney as to what to do. Legal proceedings are emotionless so how you feel about this trip, etc. mean nothing to a trustee when you are broke and filing BK.

[chrisdfw]

as long as the money you are spending is exempt you should be able to file before you go, what happens
after the filing date should not be the trustees business in a Ch7, however if you are planning a Ch13, I would
probably have my trip first. Of course all of this is subject to your attorney's opinion.

If the money is not something you can exempt then you might have an issue if you are spending non-exempt
funds after filing. If not, then spend it before filing. You don't want to pick a fight with the trustee, but legally there
is only so much they can do.

[wikkibird]

Thanks Flamingo and chrisdfw! He didn't get back to me, but understandable as we were hit with a huge snowstorm (I'm in Colorado), so they may be trying to get home to their families as well and not worrying about little 'ole me and my concern. LOL

And that is what I was thinking... if we switch to a 7, money is exempt (and it should be, I make so little money and it's all coming out of my income) go on my trip! If it's 13, probably have trip first then go! Either way, I guess I should go, it's just a matter of deciding which chapter to file by Tuesday!

[chrisdfw]

Thanks Flamingo and chrisdfw! He didn't get back to me, but understandable as we were hit with a huge snowstorm (I'm in Colorado), so they may be trying to get home to their families as well and not worrying about little 'ole me and my concern. LOL

And that is what I was thinking... if we switch to a 7, money is exempt (and it should be, I make so little money and it's all coming out of my income) go on my trip! If it's 13, probably have trip first then go! Either way, I guess I should go, it's just a matter of deciding which chapter to file by Tuesday!

Unless you have assets to protect or arrears to catch up on, if eligible, chapter 7 is generally preferred because you don't have to be in a plan for 36-60 months. If you make less than the median income you can file a 7, if you make more, it depends on the means test.

[BKAttyMI]

It sounds like you aren't even close to being ready to file if you haven't even "decided" which chapter to file under. Filing doesn't happen in one day. If the trip was pre-paid over 6 months ago, I don't see a problem with you going. However, any expenditures made on the trip will have to be paid in cash. The trustee will be looking at your bank account statements to see what you've been spending and if the issue comes up that you went on vacation just prior to filing for bankruptcy, any number of things could happen, none of them good. Essentially, if you have/had disposable income to spend going on vacation, you should have spent that money paying off your creditors, not "saving your sanity" on a vacation trip.

Harsh but true.