Regrettful Newbie - with many questions.

[KLyric]

Hello all - My name is Kris - I am located in Pennslyvania

I am a stay at home mom, since late September, and also a student majoring in photography. Im going to school on my husbands GI Bill (which pays for 60% of my tuiton and allots me $859 of a housing allowance during full months at school.

My DH is employed full time and also a member of the Army National Guard.

Our last six months of income (July-Nov 2013) outs me above the median for Chapter 7. Im a little confused when filling out the means test, so truly I am unsure about where we stand.

I have roughly 30K worth of unsecured credit card debt. I also have a mortgage with no equity, one tractor loan and two car loans. For mortgage and car loans and tractor loan, we have never been late or defaulted. Credit cards are another story. Im in default on all of them, and one has finally petitioned my local magistrate to sue me. That hearing is to take place in the beginning of Feb. 2014. I left my job in late September due to sexual harassment at work/childcare issues. I was employed with company for 7 years. Since leaving, I have started school. At this point, I own roughly $1200 worth of photography gear, due to me being a photography major. If filing, its important that I be able to keep that property, as I need it for school. I also have a 5 year old Dell computer. My husband bought it for around $1500, but after 5 years I wouldn't dream of it being worth that much. Will I lose my equipment by filing?

I do not have a defense for the judgement that has been brought to the court, therefore, the OC will win the judgement. I am unsure of what OC will do once they receive their judgement.

Our predicament is this. My husband will not be filing with me. All of my debt is in my name, with the exception of one vehicle is in both of our names. We are considering surrendering our home, because it is a lot of the reason we dug ourselves into this hole. He commutes over 2 hours one way which in this economy is a lot of money for a lot of fuel.

My questions, I suppose, have a lot to do with the likelihood of us being able to keep the vehicles, because they are not in default. Also, since I am no longer employed, would waiting to file be an option, as one of OC has already taken action to sue me? If we were to wait until April, my true current income would be better represented.

Should we look for another place to live before filing BK? Any suggestions on being sued, and what may happen if I don't immediately file BK??

thanks in advance.

[ksgirl38]

Hard to say. I didn't have that many assets when I filed. Have you spoken to an attorney yet? Consultations are free and they would probably be better equipped to answer your questions. I'd comfortably say that your computer is safe. Depending on if you can qualify for a Chapter 7 or not I would hope your photography equipment would be safe to, but I'm just guessing here. I think you have a really good argument for keeping it, but not sure how that works since it's not like they are books for school, but similar. If you are not in default on the car loans you should be able to reaffirm them and continue the payments. Sounds like the cc's and house are your major cause of debt, am I correct? Sorry I can't be of more help, but my best suggestion is to contact a local attorney for a consultation and they should be able to answer some of these questions for you. Your situation sounds a little trickier than mine was. Good luck!

[LadyInTheRed]

Welcome to BKforum!

If you are in Pennsylvania, you will probably want to use federal property exemptions. If you have no equity in your home and use federal exemptions, you will have a $22,975 wild card exemption to protect your property. This is in addition to other exemptions. You can see a comparison of PA and Federal exemptions at http://www.legalconsumer.com/bankrup...hp?ST=PA#other That computer is not worth anything now and the trustee won't want it. The camera equipment could be a different matter, but you can hopefully exempt it if you don't have other significant assets to protect with the wild card.

If you decide to give up your home, you will have plenty of time before the bank forecloses and you have to move. Many people live in their homes for years after "surrendering" it in bankruptcy and stopping mortgage payments. Don't move before you are ready to or have to.

If you have joint debt, your husband really should consider filing with you, especially if his name is on the mortgage. He will still be liable for joint debt that you discharge.

If the creditor gets a judgment, they can garnish wages (if allowed in your state) and place a lien on your house. It doesn't sound like you have wages and suspect that the benefits under the GI bill are safe. It's better to avoid a judgment if you can, but it is not the end of the world and not a reason to rush into BK if there is good reason to delay. Also, you can answer the lawsuit and delay the judgment. If a lawsuit was just filed, not a lot is likely to happen between now and April, even if they do get a judgment before then. Fling BK will stop a pending lawsuit or collection on an existing judgment.

Median income is only the first part of the means test. You can be over median and still pass.

Make appointments for free consultations with at least 3 BK attorneys who can review your situation, run your numbers and make recommendations on timing. Make sure to let them know that the GI bill is covering some of your housing expense. That could make a difference in your eligibility for a Chap 7.