1. Has anyone ever filed it themself? Any info you can give about this would help. 2. What would make them say you must file 13 vs 7? Income or what? 3. I am considering filing because my scores are now 466, 511 adn 534 due to old collection accounts being re-purchased by new collection agencies etc. All the lawsuits I went through have done NOTHING for me, but get me new cards that are close to being maxed out for several reasons. Hubby has been off work for over a year now, drawing worker's comp which is a maximum of $537/week in Texas, his income prior to this was $60K+ yr. Also the medical expenses for my daughter, MRI's, CT's traveling to specialists, motel rooms, gas, eating. And of course I have done some shopping too. I'm just aggravated and don't see any other hope. At this rate my score can't get much worse and it wasn't this bad with all my negatives. I guess it's a combination of collection accounts, new accounts and high utilization ratios. I am working 2 jobs to pay down balances, but with christmas now it's hard to pay much on them to make a difference. I can't handle 3 jobs anymore. I was BURNED out. I don't know what else to do. Any help or advice will be appreciated
Hi Christi, I filed chapter 7 3/01. It wasn't an easy decision, but our circumstances sort of forced our hand. I won't bore you with the details, but most people know when the rope has been stretched too far and it's time to explore options. We made an appt with an attorney in our area for a free consultation before we decided anything. You're supposed to be able to choose which chapter you'd prefer to file, but "disposable" income can make the determination on if a chapter 7 will work or not. Too much money left over and you may have to go the ch. 13 route. State rules vary a great deal when it comes to what is exempt or not, so this information you get at this meeting will pretty much tell you what your real choices will be. All in all after I've read so many stories about chapter 13's I'm glad we went the ch. 7 route. It was quick (only takes about 4 mos) and we were able to start rebuilding right after discharge. I wouldn't say I feel 100% glad I did it, but it did relieve the terrible stress we were under. Everyone's situations are diferent and you have to decide what's best for you and your family. Go to a consult and get the facts. You'll feel better about your choice once you see what applies to your situation according to your states rules. And you'll see that to most attorney's we're just another "case". I was scared to death they'd look at me and say something about how much debt we had, but they just gave us the help we needed to file and answered all of our questions. No one, even the trustee, made us feel "guilty" for our choice or even asked us why we wanted to file. It's not the end of the world (even though it feels like it!) and you can rebuild afterwards if it's the only option you have left. Good luck to you. I know it's not an easy choice. Do all you can to avoid it, but remember it's there if you really need it. Newstdt
Hey Christi, Sorry that this has turned out this way for you. You were my inspiration when I thought that this credit game was too much, telling me not to quit. I want to offer that same advice to you but I realize sometimes you have to do whats best for you to get the pressure off. It certainly was that way for me when I filed in '95. It was the hardest decision of my life but, I felt, one that was necessary. I'm no expert but I would definately say speak with a bankruptcy attorney and let him/her give you the advice and options. And I'm sure whatever you decide will be the best for you and then you can move forward. Here's hoping the best for you and your family always.
