at assigin mt amts changed by 600.00

What is the name of your state? ne
I contacted an atty met on tues gave him rough estimate 31,000 in debt and a copy of exp and paycheck..he sd wld be around 550 a month..today go for assign and he tells me it will be 1200 a month. He als sd that he pd his staff to do the details and that he didn't see how my taxes could be so low..like I made up the paystub..anyway

this is my question..he told me that the paycheck advance loans that I have for 3000.00 would be just considered bad checks and that it would be a civil matter.

.I also have a check for 545 for furniture that was returned due to one of the advance checks going through my bank early..which he had sd to just ad to the banckruptcy..are these checks,if I do not pay them all civil matters?

He also sd that I had to file a chp 13 because I made too much money.for a chpt 7.how is this figured.?.thank you so much for any advice!!!

[Ladynred]

If by 'paycheck advance loans' you are referring to these payday loan companies, I don't think they would be considered bad checks, but the can be discharged in bankruptcy.

As for 'not qualifying' for a Ch 7 because you 'make too much money' I wonder what the guy is talking about. Is this guy a bankruptcy lawyer who does them all the time or just someone who does them occasionally ??

Anyway, Ch 13 vs. Ch 7 is figured on a lot of things, but its NOT how much money you make. Ch 13 for is usually for people who have a lot of equity in a home or other assets to protect that are above and beyond your state's exemptions.

Ch 7 is best if you don't have any significant assets, little or no equity in a home and everything you have can be included in your state's exemptions. The kicker on your income with a Ch 7 is not how much you bring home, but how much you have left over after you pay all your normal living expenses. If you've got a lot of disposable income left after you pay your expenses, the Trustee will force you into a Ch 13 repayment plan. If you're left with close to ZERO $$ after all your expenses, then Ch 7 is not a problem.

Soooo... look hard at what your expenses are and how much money you have left after you pay them. Most people will seriously UNDERestimate their actual expenses. Figure what you spend in a year for EVERYTHING , including stuff like shoe repairs, car repairs, birthday and Christmas gifts, postage, shipping, .. you name it.. think about it. You may be able to bring that disposable income down a lot, but you want it as close to ZERO as you can get it.

Hope this helps !

thank you! This does help! yes I do mean those places where you write a check until payday. The Atty sd if I don't pay them then they will put the checks they are holding through my bank and they would not clear so then they would become "bad". I was under the impression that a bad check was criminal?

I own nothing literally, 1 couch and 1 futon a broken comp etc, but I make about 20. an hour and I went to the atty for advice and he really came out and told me he didn't evaluate anything..just put down the figures. I didn't know to include any of the things you mentioned..daycare ,lunch,presents etc..
I am assuming that I can add the entire year as some months are higher Christmas camp in summer etc and then divide by 12?

I was looking at ziinet..might be an option.

Thank you again! I sincerely!!!appreciate your help!! I was so distraught when I came home after this meeting tonight ..feeling so desperate..then I wrote you and ..well.thank you!

[Ladynred]

A 'bad check' is only criminal if you wrote it with the INTENTION to defraud the one you gave it to. If you KNEW there was no money to back the check and you KNEW it would bounce, then it would be considered criminal. So.. the key is your INTENT .. was it criminal or not ? They would have to prove that too.

This lawyer not evaluating things and not advising you that there are other expenses you can include is not a good sign. A good BK atty would have told you the kinds of things to include.

Yes.. you add up everything for the year and divide by 12 to get an average. Expenses are much more than rent, food, utilities and phone.

You absolutely want to include daycare. You also want to include car insurance, health insurance (co-pays if you have one), eye exams and glasses/contacts if you wear them, all dental visits that aren't covered, gas, auto maintenance (oil changes, wiper blades, tire rotations, transmission maintenance, brakes, tires, etc.), cell phones (they're NOT a luxury any more), household maintenance (light bulbs and things), cleaning supplies, pet care and pet food, publications (especially if they are specific to your job), school supplies (if you have school-age kids), clothing (big one !), personal care (like hair cuts/perms and such), cosmetics and other similar products you use regularly (women obviously have more of this type of expense).

Like I said, if you think about ALL your expenses that are not 'frivolous' or 'luxury' expenses, you can probably boost that expenses number a lot higher w/o cheating one bit ! I had to think about all the money I spend. Just today it cost me $110 to put in new plugs and wires on my car !! I also now need brakes..there's another $100 down the tubes. You don't need tires every year, and you wouldn't have brakes replaced yearly either, but all the other auto maintenance is cyclical and necessary. The older the vehicle, the more the maintence costs too. I threw in a little extra to cover these out-of-the-blue auto expenses ..like when my alternator died suddenly last August !

Go run some numbers ... and find another BK atty. Its very hard to do this yourself.

Thank you soo very much! I will do exactly as you sd and even if it is a chapter 13 the payments will be within my budget. I will get a new atty. Thank you! I wish I could hire you!!!!