C currently has a vehicle on which the payoff is $17,000. PC is up
to date on payments. PC wants to file Chapter 7 as soon as possible
and will no longer pay on the car loan. The question is whether PC
should surrender the vehicle to the bank before filing or hold on to
the vehicle and surrender the vehicle to the trustee or have the bank
pursue possession through the bankruptcy court.
The value of the vehicle is around $10,500–I’m estimating they will
get $8,000-9,000 at a sale. So, the deficiency will be something in
the range of $7,000-10,000.
Time limits between 7s are now 8 years, from a 13 to a 7 is 6 years, from a 7 to a 13, 4 years, and between 13s is 2 years. And yes it is between the dates of filing. And no a dismissed case doesn’t count, but it impacts how long the stay lasts if a subsequent case is filed within a year of the dismissal. The discharge of debt works pretty much the same now as it did before, you don’t have to pay part of credit card debt to get a chapter 7 discharge, it is just slightly easier for credit card companies to object to discharge.