Kinda down today

[david2]

Reading this fourm has helped me deal with this mess I'm in. But I just need to tell my story I havent worked since Aug 09 I'm almost 52 never have been unemployed since 18 years old I married young and have 3 children (waited till I thought I could afford a family I was 32 when first was born) one child is 21 the other two are 17. Wife has not worked in 20 yrs and really has no employment skills and I worked for the same company for 30 years, the owner of that company passed away in 2005 company closed so I started my own bussines 2006 was tough 2007 was good 2008 was OK 2009 it all went south. I gambled it all and lost and now cant even find a job. Plannning on filling 7 Febuary but just siting here and seeing everything I worked for fall apart is tough. I just dont know how you peopl cope with it all and I feel like no matter what I do now I will die poor and maybe homeless. Worrying about the wife and kids is the worse part. My lawyer wants me to file when I run out of cash. I have about $8,000.00 left but it just seems so wrong to sit here. Any advice?

[backtoschool]

I think your lawyer is giving you that advice because depending on the district you file in, that cash will not be exempt, and will go to the trustee.

If you ran your own business, then you have skills and are employable. 30+ years of experience is going to be applicable to a job somewhere. If you feel you need to get retrained in order to restart your career, then there are many government-funded programs to retrain "displaced" workers.

I know how you feel because I am the type that likes to take action. But in bankruptcy, there is a lot of waiting and sometimes taking action only makes things more complicated.

[StartingOver08]

Where are you located (what state)?
Do you know what exemptions you are allowed to have yet?

Are you caught up with the attorney's fee and the IRS. I only mention the IRS because sometimes when we are self employeed we might not be fully paid up with the IRS at all times. Two of the things you can pay without having an issue with the Trustee is your BK attorney and filing fees and you can pay whatever is due to Uncle Sam. You can not overpay the IRS because the Trustee will look for that, but you certainly can pay what you owe for 2009 and any prior year.

I know that once I filed and had the 341 - I felt much better about things. Getting rid of the debt goes a long way toward feeling better. I also took the time to declutter, clean out and organize because the physical activity made me feel like I was actually getting something done. It may not work for you, but its worth a try. Once you are discharged you will feel much, much better.

[david2]

I'm in Florida not sure on the exemptions, but I am (was) in the construction business and it's bad here I've been working some for one company bidding new work but without pay just trying to get some work for them so they will hire me

[StartingOver08]

Oh Our exemptions are not great at all. Especially for cash. Do you own a home?
About the only good exemption we have is the unlimited homestead, but if you are upside down and surrendering, that won't help you at all.

Look here at the exemptions for FL: http://www.legalconsumer.com/bankrup...hp?&ST=FL#wild

Auto exemption $1000/filer and $1000 personal property unless you don't have a homestead property then its $4000/filer. The link has more details.

[david2]

I owe 74,000 on 1st and 198,000 on 2nd zillow says value is 276,000 I am going to try to keep the house but if I don't find a job I don't see how I can

[StartingOver08]

Zillow values are usually too high. But if your payment is reasonable and you can keep the home, then it certainly is worth it. To get a better idea of value, get a free CMA from an experienced Realtor on a quick sale basis (sale in 30 days). Then you will know the actual value and can make an informed decision.

[frogger]

david2 - you're in the emotional stage, and that one is tough. You need to put that behind you and get into the business stage.

That is when you will look at this as a business decision. I too had many of the same concerns and problems that you had, but once a course of action was planned, things changed.

All of a sudden, I knew which way to go, and what to do to get there. No more floundering around. It's business. Look at it that way.

I do know one thing for sure. If I had continued on the path that I was going, I would have been a complete failure for me and my family. I changed directions, sucked up that male pride thing, ate some crow, and turned around.

There is now a light at the end of the tunnel, and it's not a train bearing down on me.

It's the light of freedom.

Good luck. We're here to help you.

[OhioFiler]

Reading this fourm has helped me deal with this mess I'm in. But I just need to tell my story I havent worked since Aug 09 I'm almost 52 never have been unemployed since 18 years old I married young and have 3 children (waited till I thought I could afford a family I was 32 when first was born) one child is 21 the other two are 17. Wife has not worked in 20 yrs and really has no employment skills and I worked for the same company for 30 years, the owner of that company passed away in 2005 company closed so I started my own bussines 2006 was tough 2007 was good 2008 was OK 2009 it all went south. I gambled it all and lost and now cant even find a job. Plannning on filling 7 Febuary but just siting here and seeing everything I worked for fall apart is tough. I just dont know how you peopl cope with it all and I feel like no matter what I do now I will die poor and maybe homeless. Worrying about the wife and kids is the worse part. My lawyer wants me to file when I run out of cash. I have about $8,000.00 left but it just seems so wrong to sit here. Any advice?

Your wife has plenty of skills. Attitude makes a world of difference when it comes to finding a job. Sit her down and work on a resume that includes all her talents learned as a mother, home manager and wife.

You did not lose. You lived the American dream. Now you understand what it takes to be successful. Apply the skills you learned running your own enterprise to finding a nice job. You'll succeed.

You are at a point in your life where you feel overwhelmed and are probably suffering depression. You need to seek counseling to help you move beyond this point. There are many social service agencies who can offer you assistance including free counseling services.