This book shows how to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, a legal remedy that gives consumers and businesses a fresh financial start by forgiving all or a large portion of their debts. This additional requirement is called the “means test,” and filers who, according to its calculations, could afford to repay some of their debts may not be allowed to file for Chapter 7.
How to Use This Book
Some Chapter 7 filers — about 15%, according to a recent study — will also need to do some math to figure out if they can afford to pay back some of their debt over a five-year period. Chapter 1 explains how to calculate your income and compare it to the state median; Ch.
What This Book Doesn’t Cover
12 bankruptcies or the potentially complex question of whether a farmer is better off filing for Chapter 7, Chapter 12, Chapter 11 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. When you see the fast track icon, you are warned that you may skip material that you may not need to read.
If You Need More Help
The New Bankruptcy Law
A Work in Progress
In the following chapters, we explain how to complete the required bankruptcy paperwork, what happens to your debts and property if you file for bankruptcy, how to get help with your bankruptcy, and how to collect the financial documents once your bankruptcy is final. , among other things. But before you dive into these important topics, you should first find out whether you can and should file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the first place.
Bankruptcy in America: The Big Picture
Why People File for Bankruptcy
Why You Shouldn’t Feel Guilty About Filing for Bankruptcy
And once you get that card, most credit card companies will make it very easy for you to take on more debt than you can handle. By charging high interest rates and penalties, credit card companies can cause your initial debt to grow beyond any reasonable expectation.
What About the Downside?
Credit card companies have loaded the dice. As anyone who's ever tried to rent a car (or even a movie) knows, it's hard to get by without a credit card. Credit card companies keep this system going by encouraging us to make the minimum payment, which incentivizes us to make more credit purchases and puts us in debt loads far beyond our ability to ever pay them off.
An Overview of Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
As anyone who's ever tried to rent a car—or even a movie—knows, it's hard to get by without a credit card. We now all owe our souls to the company store. in this era of billion-dollar bailouts for poorly managed financial institutions, should you really feel guilty about the debt you've built up? that's something only you can decide, but remember that major creditors expect defaults and bankruptcies and treat them as a cost of doing business. the reason banks issue so many credit cards is that it is a very profitable business, even though some credit card debt is wiped out in bankruptcies and never repaid.
What Bankruptcy Costs
Mandatory Credit Counseling
Rules that counseling agencies must follow In addition to providing services regardless of your ability to pay, counseling agencies must meet a number of other requirements.
Filing Your Papers
If you need to stop creditors quickly, you can do so without filing all the bankruptcy forms we described in Chap. In the petition, you will need to swear that you have undergone credit counseling or explain why the emergency prevented you from doing so.
The Automatic Stay
Court Control Over Your Financial Affairs
The Trustee
Trustees (and the assistant U.S. Trustees) also oversee the work of the panel or permanent trustees, who are appointed by the courts.
The Meeting of Creditors
What Happens to Your Property
Secured Debts
Contracts and Leases
Personal Financial Management Counseling
The Bankruptcy Discharge
After Bankruptcy
Who Can File for Chapter 7?
You Can Afford a Chapter 13 Repayment Plan
This means that you will be able to file for Chapter 7 regardless of your income or expenses. Marcia earned $1,000 during each of the first three months, and had no income for the last three months.
Current Monthly Income Worksheet
Census Bureau generates median figures for families with up to seven members. Congress doesn't want you to use these numbers if you have a larger family. If your family consists of more than four members, you must add a fixed amount per additional person to the four-member median household income for your state (currently this amount is $6,900). If, like most bankruptcy filers, your current monthly income is at or below the state median, you may be able to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy; however, as you will discover, your actual monthly income and actual expenses, as calculated on schedules i and j – see Chap. 6 – may also affect your eligibility to use Chapter 7. And because of the way the means test works, your actual income and expenses may be very different from what the means test shows, mainly because the means test uses your average income over the six months. months before you file and a range of IRS-approved expense amounts that may not be the same as what you actually spend each month. if your income is higher than the state median income, you will need to take the means test to find out whether a court would consider your Chapter 7 bankruptcy case to be unlawful. If this happens, you must convince the court that it is appropriate in the circumstances to file a Chapter 7 petition – see “special issues” in Chapter 7. 7.
You Previously Received a Bankruptcy Discharge
A Previous Bankruptcy Was Dismissed Within the Previous 180 Days
You Haven’t Met the Credit Counseling Requirements
You Defrauded Your Creditors
Your Filing Constitutes “Abuse”
For example, if your actual income (as calculated in Exhibit i of your bankruptcy papers) is significantly higher than your actual expenses (as calculated in Exhibit j of your papers), the court may find that you should be limited to Chapter 13 even if you succeed for the means test. Voluntary unemployment can be considered abusive because the debtor could repay some or all of the debts if he were employed.
You Are Attempting to Defraud the Bankruptcy Court
Open Letter to Debtors and Their Counsel
Does Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Make Economic Sense?
Are You Judgment Proof?
Sample Letter Telling Collection Agency to Stop Contacting You
Will Bankruptcy Discharge Enough of Your Debts?
For example, if you are facing foreclosure on your home due to default on your mortgage, or if you have debts that you can discharge in Chapter 13 but not in Chapter 7, you may want to consider using Chapter 13.
Will a Cosigner Be Stuck With Your Debts?
How Much Property Will You Have to Give Up?
For example, members of the military, professional athletes, and corporate officials may all spend significant amounts of time working in another state or country; their domicile is the state in which they have their permanent home. If it looks like Chapter 7 bankruptcy is destined to come between you and property that you really want to keep, consider filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy (or use one of the other options available are discussed in "Alternatives to Chapter 7 Bankruptcy," ... below).
Alternatives to Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
EXAMPLE 1: Several years ago, John and Louise inherited a genuine Chinese jade vase, their most prized possession. Mari decides that clearing her debts is much more important to her than hanging on to the entire system, and proceeds to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Do Nothing
You were insolvent before the creditor agreed to forgive the debt or write off the debt. If you conclude that you were insolvent when the debt was discharged, you must complete and submit IRS Form 982, Reduction of Tax Attributes Due to Discharge of Debt.
Negotiate With Your Creditors
For example, if you don't file for bankruptcy and later receive a windfall—a lottery win or an unexpected inheritance—you may lose the windfall to your creditors. To determine whether you are insolvent, add up your assets and your debts, including any debt that has been forgiven or written off.
Get Outside Help to Design a Repayment Plan
How to negotiate with your creditors is detailed in Solve Your Money Problems by Robin Leonard (Nolo). That book explains how to deal with creditors when you owe money on a variety of debts, including credit cards, mortgages, car loans, child support and alimony.
Pay Over Time With Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
May Reduce Secured Debts That Are Heavy With Interest
In some cases, Chapter 13 allows you to reduce the car's debt to the car's replacement value (what it would cost to buy the car from a retailer, given its age and condition) and get rid of the rest of the debt over the course of the lifetime of your plan. For general information about Chapter 13 bankruptcy, get a copy of The New Bankruptcy: Is It Right for You?, by Stephen Elias (Nolo).
Family Farmers Should Consider Chapter 12 Bankruptcy
Corporations and Partnerships Should Consider Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
Actions Prohibited by Residency ..36 Credit Card Debt, Medical Debt, and Legal Fees ..36 Public Benefits ..36 Criminal Debt ..37 IRS Liens and Levies ..37 Foreclosures ..37 Utilities ..37 When Occupancy Doesn't Apply ..37 Actions Not Stopped by Occupancy ..37 How You Can Lose Occupancy Protection ..38 Evictions ..40 If Landlord Already Has a Judgment ..40 Endangering Property or Illegal Use of Controlled Substances . .41. One of the most powerful features of bankruptcy is the automatic stay: a court order that goes into effect as soon as you file bankruptcy and protects you from certain actions by your creditors.
Actions Prohibited by the Stay
Federal law (and the law of many states) prohibits this activity by debt collectors when you tell the creditor in writing that you do not want to be called. And if you verbally tell debt collectors that you refuse to pay, by law they can't contact you, except to send a final letter demanding payment before filing a lawsuit.
Credit Card Debts, Medical Debts, and Attorney Fees
Many people start thinking about bankruptcy when their creditors start calling them at home and at work. While telling the creditor to stop usually works, you may need to send a written follow-up letter.
Public Benefits
Debt Associated With Criminal Proceedings
IRS Liens and Levies
Utilities
When the Stay Doesn’t Apply
Actions Not Stopped by the Stay
How You Can Lose the Protection of the Stay
More than one previous bankruptcy case has been filed by (or against) you in the past year. Missing deadlines for dealing with secured debts If you have property that secures a debt - that is, property that the creditor has the right to take if you do not pay the debt - you will need to file a statement of intent with the court and deliver it to (send or deliver) to your creditors.
Evictions
If the Landlord Already Has a Judgment
Endangering the Property or Illegal Use of Controlled Substances
Property in your bankruptcy estate ..44 Property that you own and own ..44 Property that you own, but do not own ..45 Property that you recently gave away ..45 Property that you may receive, but that you do not yet own when you File ..46 Income from property of the bankrupt estate ..46 Certain property acquired within 180 days after you have filed a declaration ..47 Your share of the matrimonial property ..47 Property that is not part of your estate ..49 Property You Can Keep ..50 How Exemptions Work ..50 Applying Exemptions to Your Property ..54 Property Exemption Worksheet ..58 Selling Non-Exempt Property Before Filing ..62 How to Proceed .. 62 Six guidelines for pre-bankruptcy planning ..63. This chapter explains what happens to your personal property if you file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Property in Your Bankruptcy Estate
And if you own personal property that serves as collateral for a debt, that property is handled a little differently.
Property You Own and Possess
Property that belongs to someone else is not part of your bankruptcy estate—even if you control the property—because you do not have the right to sell it or give it away. EXAMPLE 1: A parent sets up a trust for their child and appoints you as trustee to manage the money in the trust until the child's 18th birthday.
Property You Own but Don’t Possess
Property You Have Recently Given Away
Property You Are Entitled to Receive but Don’t Yet Possess When You File
Proceeds From Property of the Bankruptcy Estate
For example, in one case an employee was entitled to participate in a profit-sharing plan, but only if he was still employed by the company at the end of the year.
Certain Property Acquired Within 180 Days After You File
Your Share of Marital Property
But the equity of the spouse who does not file for bankruptcy is not part of the bankruptcy estate. EXAMPLE: Paul owns a twin-engine Cessna as his separate property (he owned it before he married Sonya).
Property That Isn’t in Your Bankruptcy Estate
Any money placed in the account more than two years before your filing is excluded from the bankruptcy estate indefinitely. Some believe that while the statute appears to exclude all contributions made more than two years before filing, it limits the total exclusion for education accounts and tuition programs to $5,475, regardless of when the funds are deposited.
Property You Can Keep
These exemptions are unlimited - that is, the entire account is exempt, regardless of how much money is in it - except in case. These accounts are exempt whether you use the federal or state exemption system.
How Exemptions Work
Before the new bankruptcy law, filers used the exemptions of the state in which they lived when filing for bankruptcy. however, under the new rules, some applicants will have to use the exemptions of the state in which they lived. Take a close look at the trading exemption rule tools available to you – you may be pleasantly surprised at what you can keep.
Applying Exemptions to Your Property
Potential tax refund on a return that has not yet been filed. Patents, copyright and other intellectual property. Using the Property Exemptions Worksheet now that you have a comprehensive list of your property, you can decide how to use the exemptions to your best advantage.
Property Exemption Worksheet
Paula then checks to see if New Mexico allows debtors to use federal bankruptcy exemptions. If your state also allows you to use federal bankruptcy exemptions (or you live in California), check to see if the federal exemption (or California's System 2 exemption) covers your assets.
Selling Nonexempt Property Before You File
If you use state exemptions, you are also eligible to use a handful of named exemptions. federal bankruptcy exemptions.”. For example, if both your state and federal non-bankruptcy exemptions allow you to exempt 75% of your available weekly earnings, you can't combine the exemptions to keep all of your wages — 75% is all you get.
How to Proceed
However, being rid of a debt doesn't mean you can't pay it, as long as you wait until after you file and don't use any estate property. For example, if you file for bankruptcy on March 12, 2008, you can use any income you earn after that date to pay the creditor. After all, that income does not fall under your bankruptcy estate.
Six Guidelines for Prebankruptcy Planning
Don’t just change the form of property ownership
If you take out the loan while you are bankrupt and file for bankruptcy soon after, you are likely to be penalized. 73 Ways To Avoid Losing Your Home ..82 Lower Your Wealth Before You File For Bankruptcy ..82 If You File For Bankruptcy ..83.
How Bankruptcy Affects a Typical Homeowner
If you own two homes or want to protect the equity in a home that is not your residence, consulting with a bankruptcy attorney is a must. If you are married, own your home and plan to file on your own, consult with a bankruptcy attorney first.
Mortgage Payments
If you own a home, Chapter 7 bankruptcy may not be the best strategy for dealing with your debts. We provide this information to make you aware of some options that may be available to you.
Liens on Your House
Keeping Your House
How a Homestead Exemption Works: An Example
In re Reed, 940 F.2d 1317 (9th Cir.1991).) while your home equity may be protected by a state homestead law when you file, it may not be fully protected six months or a year after filing if is your bankruptcy court follows these cases. But if the value of your home increases significantly while your bankruptcy is still open, the trustee may be able to sell the home, grant you relief, and pay the appreciated value to your unsecured creditors.
If You’re Behind on Your Mortgage Payments
Negotiating With the Lender
Mortgage Workouts
If the Lender Starts to Foreclose
Many lenders have found clever ways to hide high costs and fees in refinancing deals. if you're at least 62 years old and have significant equity in your home, consider getting a reverse mortgage. you can use this type of loan to pay off the lender and get some money every month based on your equity. File Chapter 13 bankruptcy if you can't find the money you need in a large amount right away, and you can propose a possible repayment plan.
Defenses to Foreclosure
But be careful when deciding whether to refinance. in many cases, refinancing hurts more than it helps. For more information about reverse mortgages, see "Ways to Avoid Losing Your Home" below.).
If Foreclosure Is Unavoidable
Getting Equity Out of Your Home Many people who fall behind on their mortgage payments find that the longer they can delay foreclosure, the longer they can live rent-free in the home. Basically, it's a backroom way to get a significant chunk of equity out of your home without selling it or going into bankruptcy.
Will You Lose Your Home?
For example, if your mortgage payment is $1,500 a month and you manage to live in the home for a year without making your payments, you have withdrawn the equivalent of $18,000 of equity from your home. However, people in financial distress can find at least some comfort in not swallowing all of their equity in a foreclosure or losing it in a bankruptcy because of a low or non-existent homestead exemption.
Do You Have any Equity in Your Home?
- Estimated market value of your home
- Costs of sale
- Amount owed on mortgages and other loans enter the amount needed to pay off your mortgage
- Amount of liens
- Line 2 + Line 3 + Line 4
- Your Equity) = Line 1 – Line 5
The Trustee's Power to Eliminate Liens – And How It Could Cost You Your Home When the property has liens on it for more than the property is worth, it is "overinsured." If a trustee sells oversecured property, there won't be enough money to pay off all the liens, meaning one or more liens will be left with nothing. If the trustee eliminates enough liens to make equity available (above the exemption amount on your home), it may be worth the trustee's time and effort to sell your home.
Homeowners’ Worksheet
Do you have any equity in your home?
Is your property protected by an exemption?
- Does the available homestead exemption protect your kind of dwelling?
- Do you have to file a “declaration of homestead”
- Lot Size: Does the homestead exemption limit the size of the lot you can protect?
- Do you own the property with your spouse in
- Is the dollar amount of the homestead exemption limited?
- Can you protect more equity with a wildcard exemption?
- How much of your equity is protected?
- Is your home fully protected?
If for one of these reasons you are found to have converted property, the value of your homestead exemption will be reduced by the value of the property you converted. Maryland (This is the only exemption you can use on your home; there is no home exemption.) 5,500.
Ways to Prevent the Loss of Your House
Reduce Your Equity Before Filing for Bankruptcy
If You File for Bankruptcy
Finally, we provide step-by-step, do-it-yourself instructions for some simple procedures for dealing with secured debts. if you choose one of the complex procedures, we explain the basics, but you will need the help of a lawyer.). For example, mortgages and car loans are secured debts. when you fill out your bankruptcy forms, you list all of your secured debts on schedule d. Ch. 6 explains how to do this.).
Security Interests
If you purchase an item on credit and pledge it as collateral for the debt, the lien on the collateral is called a purchase money security interest. If you do not retain possession of the property (for example, if you transfer the property to a pawn shop), the loan is called possession.
Nonconsensual Liens
For example, if you purchase a large appliance on credit, the store may require you to sign a security agreement agreeing to use the purchased item as collateral for your refund.
IOU +
IOU $
What Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Does to Secured Debts
Eliminating Liens in Bankruptcy
Finally, you can get rid of a lien by simply transferring the property to the creditor.
If You Don’t Eliminate Liens
Ways to Deal With Secured Debts in Bankruptcy
Surrender Property
Finally, you can get rid of the lien simply by surrendering the property to the creditor. The choice of which procedure to use for each item of insured property is up to you. you simply list the property as surrendered on your statement of intent and send a copy of the form to the creditor within 45 days of filing for bankruptcy. It is then up to the creditor to contact you to set up a time to collect the property. you must make the property available to the creditor within 30 days after the first meeting of creditors. if the creditor never takes the property, it's yours to keep. this can happen if, for example, the lien is on your household furniture that is several years old and it is not worth the cost of taking it, storing it and selling it at auction.) we provide step-by-step instructions for handing over the property at the end of this chapter.
Avoid (Eliminate) Liens
Most often, you will have to pay off the lien in one lump sum, but some creditors may be willing to accept installments, especially if you compromise on the value of the lien. you request lien avoidance by checking the "Property Claimed as Exempt" column on the statement of intent and printing and filing a claim. If the total of all these items is greater than the value of the property, then you can completely eliminate the liens on the property.
Judicial Lien Worksheet
Redeem Property
You can also check Kelley Blue Book (www.kbb.com) for the value of cars in various conditions. For example, if your car has serious body damage or an expensive, imminent mechanical failure (such as a transmission that needs to be replaced), you can reasonably determine the value.
Reaffirm a Debt
However, if she tries to keep the car without reaffirming or redeeming it, the automatic stay will no longer prevent the creditor from repossessing it. You can always approach the creditor to see if they will agree in advance to let you keep the property without reaffirming or paying off the debt.
Pay Off the Lien Later in a Follow-Up Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
Lien Elimination Techniques Beyond the Scope of This Book
Choosing the Best Options
If the option you're considering would require you to pay more than the current market value of the property you want to keep, it's a bad deal. There are usually ways that you or an attorney can keep any type of secured property by paying no more than its current replacement value.
What Property Should You Keep?
Real Estate or Motor Vehicles
Because repossessed vehicles can easily be resold, if a lien remains on your car, the creditor will likely move quickly to either repossess it or force its sale (unless you keep up with your payments and the creditor doesn't will win by and sell the car).
Exempt Property
Nonexempt Property
In practice, however, the creditor will not return the property unless the court orders it (which usually means you need the help of a lawyer) or unless you make a reasonable cash offer for the item. If you plan to avoid the lien on the exempt item and pay nothing, the creditor will likely not transfer the property unless forced to do so by court order.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Assuming you don't want to hire a lawyer, you probably won't be able to get an item back unless you talk the creditor into letting you settle it or reaffirm the debt. The lender may prefer to have cash on hand rather than use property sitting in a warehouse.
How to Surrender Property
Legally, the creditor must return such property because the repossession is an illegal preference, which means that the property is still part of the bankruptcy estate. Whether it's worth hiring an attorney to get an exempt item back so you can avoid the lien depends on how badly you need the property and what you'll save by avoiding the lien.
Receipt for Surrender of Property
If, during the 90 days before you filed for bankruptcy, a secured creditor took exempt property that would qualify for either lien avoidance or foreclosure, you may be able to get the property back. If these options are cheaper or you decide you can do without the property, don't worry about the court order.
How to Avoid Liens on Exempt Property
Notice of Motion and Motion to Avoid Real Estate Lien [Your Name] [Your Address] [Your Address] [Your Telephone Number] [Last Four Digits of Taxpayer ID. THEREFORE, the debtor requests an order against [lien holder] to avoid and cancel the judicial lien in the above- 1. Notice and Motion to Avoid Judicial Lien on Real Estate.
How to Redeem Property
Once paid in full as specified in Paragraph 5, Creditor will take all steps necessary to terminate its security interest in Collateral. Upon receipt of the payment specified in Paragraph 4, Creditor shall take all steps necessary to terminate its security interest in Collateral.
How to Reaffirm a Debt
And the consequences of a dismissal can be serious: Not only will you continue to owe your debts and face collection proceedings by creditors, but you may also lose the protection of the automatic stay in any future bankruptcy case you file (see Chapter 2 for more information). on automatic residence).
Gather the Necessary Documents
The Credit Counseling Certificate
Most of these credit counseling agencies charge a modest fee (usually $25-$50) for the consultation, issuing a repayment plan (if it gets that far), and a certificate of completion, which you'll need to file with the other bankruptcy paperwork. In that case, the debtor claimed he learned he could file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy—and that he would have to undergo credit counseling—the night before he filed.
Your Tax Return or Transcript
899 (s.d. ind. 2006).) this seemingly technical difference can be very important: If your case is stricken, you can refile without any of the adverse consequences of dismissal (including possible loss of the protection of the automatic stay). , which is explained in chap. .
Wage Stubs
Get Some Information From the Court
Because Tom has spent more of the past six months in the Northern District than in the Central, he must file with the bankruptcy court in the Northern District. If it is too inconvenient to file there, he can wait another month, when he will be eligible to file in the Central District Court.
Fees
Most readers will use the first option - but many will likely invest in the larger city closest to their home. If you live in a state with more than one county, call the courthouse in the nearest city and ask if that county includes your county or zip code.
Local Forms
Finding the Right Bankruptcy Court Because bankruptcy is a creature of federal, not state, law, you must file for bankruptcy in a special federal court. To find a bankruptcy court in your state, check the government directories in your white pages (under "United States, Courts"), call telephone directory assistance, ask your local librarian, or visit the court directory link at www.bankruptcydata.com.
Local Court Rules
EXAMPLE: For the past two months, Tom has lived in San Luis Obispo, which is in California's Central Judicial District.
Number of Copies
Order of Papers and Other Details
Sample Letter to Bankruptcy Court
Are You Married?
Should You File Jointly?
Because the best choice will depend on your unique situation, we encourage you to speak with a bankruptcy attorney if you have any questions about which option makes more sense.
Required Forms and Documents
Checklist of Required Bankruptcy Forms
Because the best choice depends on your unique situation, we recommend that you speak with a bankruptcy attorney if you have questions about which option makes the most sense. Taken together, these forms are commonly referred to as your "bankruptcy filing," although technically your filing is only Form 1. In case you're wondering, Forms 2, 4, and 5 are not used in voluntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy filings. To qualify, you must not be able to pay in installments and your income must be less than 150%.
Checklist of Required Documents
You can find a blank copy of the form in Appendix 3; as you will see, it is quite complicated and requires you to repeat much of the information from your other papers.
Where to Get the Official Forms
Tips for Completing the Forms
Most forms come with pre-formatted continuation pages that you can use if you need more space. Business.” if in doubt, check "Business". later this category will be very important.
Schedule A—Real Property
Signature(s) of debtor(s) (Individual/Jointly). you—and your spouse, if you file jointly—must sign where indicated. if you are filing alone, type “n/a” on the joint debtor signature line. include your phone number and the date. you - and your spouse, if filing jointly - state that you are aware that you can file under other sections of the bankruptcy code, and that you still choose to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. these provisions are described in Ch. 1. You may own property even if you cannot walk on it, live on it or get income from it.
Schedule B—Personal Property
Powers exercisable in favor of the debtor” means that a person has been given power to manage the assets your way, but this did not happen by the time you filed for bankruptcy. For example, if you were recently involved in a car accident and are dealing with a neck injury, you may have grounds for a lawsuit against the other driver (and that driver's insurance company).
Schedule C—Property Claimed as Exempt
The debtor selects the exemptions for which the debtor is eligible: if you are using the federal exemptions, check the top box. For example, if you're allowed household furniture up to a total of $2,000, don't inflate the value of each item of furniture just to get to $2,000.
Schedule D—Creditors Holding Secured Claims
For example, if you co-signed a secured loan, you will not be liable unless the principal debtor defaults. Instead, make sure that the debt, if you still owe it, is discharged in your bankruptcy (if it can be discharged; see Chapter 9).
Schedule E—Creditors Holding Unsecured Priority Claims
For example, if you have been sued or pursued by a collection agency, you must list the collection agency in addition to the original creditor. For each priority debt other than taxes, enter the amount needed to pay the debt in full, even if it is more than the priority limit.
Schedule F—Creditors Holding Unsecured Nonpriority Claims
For example, for a particular debt, you may have the name, address and account number of the original creditor, a collection agency operated by the original. But you can leave out the intermediate collectors and just list the original creditor and the most recent collector or attorney.
Schedule G—Executory Contracts and Unexpired Leases
The trustee has 60 days after you file for bankruptcy to decide whether the executory contract or unexpired lease should be taken over (continue in effect) as property of the estate or terminated (rejected). In general, most leases and contracts are obligations and are rejected by the trustee.
Schedule H—Codebtors
Schedule I—Current Income of Individual Debtor(s)
Regular income from operation of business or profession or farm. if you are self-employed or operate
Alimony, maintenance or support payments payable to the debtor for the debtor’s use or that of
Social Security or government assistance
Describe any increase or decrease in income reasonably anticipated to occur within the year following
Schedule J—Current Expenditures of Individual Debtor(s)
If a creditor can prove that you lied on a credit application, the debt can survive the bankruptcy. For example, if you plan to pay off a car note in the coming year, you must indicate that.
Summary of Schedules
Creditors sometimes try to use the information on these forms to prove that you committed fraud when you applied for credit. If this describes your situation, go back over your expenses and make sure they are accurate.
Statistical Summary of Certain Liabilities and Related Data
If the accuracy of this form will materially conflict with the information you previously provided to the creditor, contact a bankruptcy attorney before filing.
Declaration Concerning Debtor’s Schedules
Income from employment or operation of business
Provide the source of each amount, the dates received and the reason you received the money so the trustee can verify it if he or she wants. Debtor whose debt is not primarily consumer debt. if your debt is primarily business debt, list all payments or other transfers made to a creditor within 90 days of filing related to property worth $5,475 or more. list all payments or other transfers made to a domestic creditor, if the payments or transfers were made within one year before you file for bankruptcy. includes alimony and child support payments. the purpose of these questions is to find out if you preferred any creditor over others. if you paid a regular creditor during the 90 days before your filing, or an insider during the year before your filing, the trustee can demand that the creditor surrender the amount to the court so the trustee can use it to pay your other unsecured creditors. see Ch.3.) the trustee may ask you to provide written evidence of any payments you list here, such as copies of canceled checks, check stubs or bank statements.
Suits and administrative proceedings, executions, garnishments and attachments
