Pro se. Scared and huge issue

[sarra1833]

I read on many sites that less than 2% of pro se filers win. They don't get all the right paper work or can't represent themselves correct in court or miss steps. I also have one huge issue.

I have 3k in Robinhood which isn't an ira at all, it's just a brokerage account. So I need to move thst money to TD Ameritrade into my Roth Ira asap. How long should I wait to file ch 7 so that transfer won't be taken back by the trustee? It's all I have for retirement savings and I'm 47 years old. If I lose that my chance to build it is over forever as I can't start over and I'm running out of time as I'm aging. I can't stomach losing it. Took me 3 years to get that earned from the stock market.

I have a medical bill wage garnishment leaving me 217.50 take home a week out of 400 a week gross. I can't get a 2nd job because they'll take all of that income also. I've been living off crackers and chips because I have to pay rent and bills. I also have 4 credit cards, always paid on time, I pay 20 to 30 a week. Had the 2 capital one cards down to 90 dollars each but then Christmas came and no work for 2 weeks so I put some bills on one that's now at 545 dollars. I hate being in such debt.

I want to do ch7 to stop the garnishment.. I'd rather not lose my credit cards as I keep getting limit increases as I'm always early and on time paid, never missed a date once and my percent is 12% credit utiliaton across all cards. It's not like I'm at 100% utilization combined.

But I have more medical bills in collections and sadly live In a sue happy state (Indiana) and they'll soon sue also. I need to do ch7 but my biggest concern is the 3k in stocks/options. I can't lose that. I'd rather die, you know? So how long do I wait until I file once I move it to my Ira account?

Oh and also, I have no assets. No car, home, collectibles (I'm getting a 600$ music keyboard soon but it's for income purposes : composing and selling albums). Been saving for this for 7 years now.) all I have are thrift store clothing and old boots.

[justbroke]

I read on many sites that less than 2% of pro se filers win. They don't get all the right paper work or can't represent themselves correct in court or miss steps. I also have one huge issue.

Win what? For Chapter 7s, Pro Se filers do this every day and are 100% successful! Now, Chapter 13s are much more complex and those are less likely to be done by a Pro Se filer. But, and I repeat, Chapter 7 Pro Se filers are usually pretty successful.

I have 3k in Robinhood which isn't an ira at all, it's just a brokerage account. So I need to move thst money to TD Ameritrade into my Roth Ira asap. How long should I wait to file ch 7 so that transfer won't be taken back by the trustee? It's all I have for retirement savings and I'm 47 years old. If I lose that my chance to build it is over forever as I can't start over and I'm running out of time as I'm aging. I can't stomach losing it. Took me 3 years to get that earned from the stock market.

You should try to get some free consultations on this topic. I can't speak to this legal question. Because you now you're filing, someone could say that you're hiding the money to keep it out of the hands of the creditors. But, you could fund an IRA before taxes are due this year.

I have a medical bill wage garnishment leaving me 217.50 take home a week out of 400 a week gross. I can't get a 2nd job because they'll take all of that income also. I've been living off crackers and chips because I have to pay rent and bills. I also have 4 credit cards, always paid on time, I pay 20 to 30 a week. Had the 2 capital one cards down to 90 dollars each but then Christmas came and no work for 2 weeks so I put some bills on one that's now at 545 dollars. I hate being in such debt.

They can only garnish 25% of your total pay, so working a second job won't have them taking 100% of the second job. At least that is how I understand garnishment (a non-governmental garnishment).

I want to do ch7 to stop the garnishment.. I'd rather not lose my credit cards as I keep getting limit increases as I'm always early and on time paid, never missed a date once and my percent is 12% credit utiliaton across all cards. It's not like I'm at 100% utilization combined.

You will lose them (period). You may or may not be able to get new cards 3-6 months after discharge/close.

But I have more medical bills in collections and sadly live In a sue happy state (Indiana) and they'll soon sue also. I need to do ch7 but my biggest concern is the 3k in stocks/options. I can't lose that. I'd rather die, you know? So how long do I wait until I file once I move it to my Ira account?

You can exercise those stocks and use the money for an attorney to file or to eat, live, pay rent. (I don't know why the creditor didn't levy that account already.)

Oh and also, I have no assets. No car, home, collectibles (I'm getting a 600$ music keyboard soon but it's for income purposes : composing and selling albums). Been saving for this for 7 years now.) all I have are thrift store clothing and old boots.

I suggest 3-5 free consultations with local attorneys in your area. This seems pretty cut-and-dry except for the $3K sitting in the brokerage account. But, in bankruptcy, you can protect around $10K in property... so the cash could be protected. You will need to obtain more specifics from an attorney in your area. (For example, I don't know if you can protect "cash" with that property exemption.)

[flashoflight]

sarra1833 First of all, you can't keep any of the credit cards. Just forget that horrible idea. You can't leave off any creditors and even if you did, they will find out anyway and the trustee won't be happy you perjured yourself. I would just stop paying all the credit cards and save that credit card payment money for an attorney.

You also have a time crunch because that wage garnishment is costing you money every week you wait. Also, the lawsuit/garnishment creditor can levy/garnish/drain your $3k in Robinhood tonight and you will wake up to zero with absolutely no notice. No creditor is going to tell you they are draining your accounts tonight. I use the word TONIGHT because it can happen TONIGHT. So it's better to sell your stock, convert the proceeds to cash (dont deposit any of it in your bank),and earmark some of that cash for the BK7 attorney. If you move it to the IRA, the money is safe but I wouldn't do that until you get the OK from a BK attorney because that looks like you're trying to hinder your creditors from draining your accounts lol. Change your work's direct deposit from the bank to a prepaid account because I've heard of nobody getting their prepaid account drained by a judgment creditor. But that doesn't mean it can't happen. Still I would live on cash and cash out every paycheck right away.

If you have multiple creditors ready to sue, it's very possible one or more of them already has and gotten a default judgement without your notice due to improper service. With default judgement, they can drain your bank account and Robinhood with no notice.

You don't have time to do the BK7 slowly pro se due to the wage garnishment and possible bank/brokerage levy. I hope you didn't charge anything on the credit cards over the past 90 days because that will cause an issue too. You also cannot use the credit cards to pay for the attorney. So start interviewing BK7 attorneys right away. BK7 attorneys can file much faster than you can learn how to pro se it.

[dontlook]

Hold on. Indiana is NOT a wage attachment state. And the 2% success rate is hogwash. It CAN be done pro se.

[dontlook]

PS- that income, you might qualify for food stamps, and that can be applied for online.