The District of Minnesota has one of the highest rates of discharge for clients that file a chapter 13 in the country. So you are already off to a good start in a district that tries to see clients succeed and eliminate barriers to their success. With that, a chapter 13 isn’t an easy journey and you do need to be proactive to manage your case.
1. After your case is filed, register for NDC
This website allows you to see your chapter 13 plan (including if you have a plan step up), see when your payments post and watch distributions to your creditors. It’s a very user friendly site. Get started by going to https://www.ndc.org/home
2. If you can, set up automatic payments
For clients with Gregory Burrell as the trustee, you can have the payments pulled out automatically from your checking account each month for no fee. The form is found here
For clients with Kyle Carlson as the trustee, you can set up ePay to have a recurring payment pulled from your checking or savings account each month for a $1.50 fee (still cheaper than a money order)! To get started click here
3. File your taxes on time each year
One of the requirements of your bankruptcy is to file your taxes each year and send a copy to your trustee. You can apply for an extension but if you can avoid that, it’s always best for your bankruptcy case. Filing your taxes late because you know you owe money, only allows the IRS to assess penalties, so even if you will owe, always file your taxes on time and a send a copy to your trustee.
4. Keep your attorney informed of any income/expense changes
You can always have your attorney reassess your chapter 13 plan due to an income or expense change. Even if you think it’s a small change, please reach out before you fall behind on payments. It’s always easier to come up with a game plan before you fall behind. Most clients are in a 5 year chapter 13 plan; that is a long time! Most clients have at least one plan modification during that time so don’t hesitate to reach out!
5. Keep your attorney informed on contact information changes
We can’t help you, if we can’t find you! Again, most plans are 5 year plans, and many people will move, change phone numbers, stop checking an old email address etc., always let us know when your contact information changes so we can find you to complete your discharge at the end of the plan! Reading this and thinking your contact information might be out of date? Shoot us an email: bill@kainhenehan.com or margaret@kainhenehan.com
