Keansburg, NJ Bankruptcy Law Firms & Lawyers

The simple answer is yes. Generally you get to keep all of your assets in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. In order for your Chapter 13 plan to be approved by the court there are two tests that have to be met. You have to pay all of your available income into the plan. That means that you will be placed on a budget and all of your excess income beyond your allowable expenses must be paid on a monthly basis into the plan. You also have to pay into the plan at least as much as you would have had to surrender in a Chapter 7 (liquidation) bankruptcy. Assuming that the savings account was not exempt and that was your only nonexempt asset, you would have to pay at least $20,000 into the plan to satisfy this test. The plan is typically 36 or 60 months depending on your income. So in a 36 month plan the payment would need to be at least $555.55 per month (20,000/36) to satisfy this test. For a 60 month plan the payment would need to be at least $333.33 per month (20,000/60) to satisfy this test.

You can file Chapter 13 and keep the money. However your payout to creditors through your Chapter 13 plan must be equal to or greater then what your creditors would receive in a Chapter 7.