Preparation is the key for success when filing bankruptcy in Florida. The best bankruptcy cases go unnoticed as debtors glide through the system without attracting attention to receive a full discharges in record time. Luck is not involved. Planning began months before filing.
The most successful filers know something that you don’t. Small lifestyle changes may alter means test income and expenses before filing. Well-planned strategic changes will have a dramatic effect on the results of the means test. With a few weeks or months to plan, creating $300 improvement on the bankruptcy means test calculation will save $18,000 in wasted Chapter 13 payments. Just as easily, many people avoid Chapter 13 altogether and may file Chapter 7 when understanding the test procedure. Timing is critical.
2010 Bankruptcy Strategies and the Means Test Explained
11 U.S.C. Section 522(d): The following property may be exempted under subsection (b)(1) of this section: (1) The debtor's aggregate interest, not to exceed $16,150 in value, in real property or personal property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor uses as a residence, in a cooperative that owns property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor uses as a residence, or in a burial plot for the debtor or a dependent of the debtor.
Value allowed is determined by equity, based upon a fair market price which may be received by a non-professional seller in the open market. The full text of 11 U.S.C. 522 - federal bankruptcy statutes - is available online through the Cornell University Law School. Values are an opinion based upon subjective analysis, and therefore provide fertile ground for objections filed by trustees, creditors, and parties in interest. In the event of disputed value, after notice and hearing, the court determines a reasonable value.
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