Hi again - 3rd time list of expenses

[mountanddo]

Charity, probably not going to fly.

The charity is safe. You are allowed up to 15% of your income to contribute to charity (usually tithe). As long as you can prove that you've been doing it long-term, it's a non-issue.

Basketbears, as you see here there are differing opinions about what will fly and what won't. As you read in your posts you have gotten statements that Aqua finance won't be allowed yet two attorney's have told you it is a secured debt.

I would think that if she could show that the gasoline expense was necessary for work that this would be able to be justified.

Also, my cable/internet/phone is $140 and my cell phone is about the same. My attorney didn't say anything about those being too high. I have a year contract left on both. She did list the cable/internet/phone in the utility/phone section and the cell in utility/other.

I have no misc. section but she put down personal care and cleaning supplies at $150 and household goods/paper products at $35. Recreation at $100

Now maybe I'm just stupid and she knows that these amounts aren't going to fly with the trustee. I can't imagine that she in good faith would tell me that this plan will work if it wouldn't. (naive maybe?)

I would take the advice on here as general advice. Only your attorney knows exactly what will and what won't fly with the trustee where you live. In other words, don't get all worked up about what people say that are specific to your plan. As you can see above, opinions differ I wish you luck and will be curious to see in the end what actually was allowed.

[helpmeout]

Basketbears, as you see here there are differing opinions about what will fly and what won't. As you read in your posts you have gotten statements that Aqua finance won't be allowed yet two attorney's have told you it is a secured debt.

I would think that if she could show that the gasoline expense was necessary for work that this would be able to be justified.

Also, my cable/internet/phone is $140 and my cell phone is about the same. My attorney didn't say anything about those being too high. I have a year contract left on both. She did list the cable/internet/phone in the utility/phone section and the cell in utility/other.

I have no misc. section but she put down personal care and cleaning supplies at $150 and household goods/paper products at $35. Recreation at $100

Now maybe I'm just stupid and she knows that these amounts aren't going to fly with the trustee. I can't imagine that she in good faith would tell me that this plan will work if it wouldn't. (naive maybe?)

I would take the advice on here as general advice. Only your attorney knows exactly what will and what won't fly with the trustee where you live. In other words, don't get all worked up about what people say that are specific to your plan. As you can see above, opinions differ I wish you luck and will be curious to see in the end what actually was allowed.

Yes, Aqua is a secured debt. And if the OP doesn't reaffirm (which is the wise course), the Trustee can push back on it. And if the OP is not current with the payments, it's going to be an even more of an uphill battle.

I was allowed a Misc category on the main page. I also had to detail it on another page. The misc category covers cell phone, cable, pretty much misc. stuff. The OP has what would be considered misc listed individually and a misc expense. That's double dipping. You had no misc section because you listed it in other categories.

As for transportation costs, by the time you add all of the maintenance items to the gas costs (gas and maintenance are operating costs), the OP is over the IRS standard in every state except for Miami. The OP probably falls in the midwest. This alone will put the OP into a Chapter 13. Add the double dipping in the misc category and the very strong possibility that the Aqua won't be allowed (the attorney is going to attempt to get it through, whether successful or not is going to depend on the UST given how close they are to a Chapter 13) and the food being way over the limit (a household of 2 is $537 a month not $663, which , btw, is also higher than the standard for a 3 person household).

My attorney added a little to each category, basically food and utilities, but not by much. Had my schedule looked like the OP's when I filed (including rent/mortgage, which mine didn't include as I was not current on the mortgage and was not keeping the house), I would have been pushed into a Chapter 13.

And the tithe to the church is safe only if they can prove that they have been doing so all along. Which, as another poster has already stated, is going to require a statement from the church they give the money to. But, to be honest, that is the least of their problems.

[HHM]

Just get the expenses to your attorney, he/she will eventually tell you what will fly and what won't (hopefully...unless you are with a cheap or poor attorney that simply transcribes what you give them and hopes for the best).

The trustee is likely going to need you to prove your transportation expense since it is well over the allowed expense (unless that amount is normal for the area), so just be prepared.

Aqua finance is a creditor, so you may get some push back on that expense being allowed, but yes, you do want to list it as a secured debt and take the expense.

I think you are missing a fundamental point of how to work with your attorney...your attorney needs to know what you actually "spend," so you want to list "everything.". The attorney will then edit the list, so you don't really need to be spending this sort of time and brain power on editing your expenses, you are obsessing over something that is largely out of your control.

[basketsbears]

Thanks again to all. I really do appreciate the input.

HHM that is exactly what I am going to do. Send the expenses to the attorney. No, I am not going with a "cheap" attorney. We have it narrowed down to 2, neither are bankruptcy mills. The last one we went to is probably who we will be going with and believe me, she was not cheap. $1500 for 7, $3500 for 13. She spent 1 1/2 hours in our initial meeting and talked a lot about timing of filing, how it works, etc.

I won't post anymore expenses. Originally, I was told, by both attorneys, to list everything that we spend, or would like to spend, if we did not have the current unsecured debt we have so they could go through our expenses. So, that is what I originally did in my first post.

Thanks again for all the input. I will keep everyone posted on our journey.

Happy Holidays!!!

Lynn

[keepsmiling]

Are we no longer talking about buying a car?
Seems like folks here sometimes do that....

[basketsbears]

Hi keepsmiling,

We are talking about it. We would prefer not to, but we may. We are checking on different dealers on financing etc. One has said they could work with us, but I don't have the details yet.

Thanks for your help!

Lynn