Legal Question in Bankruptcy in North Carolina

Maybe, maybe not...it depends on what you are paying and if there are creditors not being paid...sometimes that money goes to them instead of finishing the case. Selling assets also typically requires approval form the Court. Speak to your attorney about your case.

One of the advantages of Chapter 13 and Chapter 11 for that matter is control. In a Chapter 7 case, the United States Trustee is permitted to market and sell all non-exempt assets. Not often does a Trustee recover the maximum sales price and, of course there are fees and commissions to reduce the dividend to creditors. In a Chapter 13, the debtor controls the marketing and sales. Of course, approval of the sale is required, but the court is interested in the best result for the parties. As the commercial goes, who doesn't want more cash except for the infant in the highchair? The process of the debtor selling all the assets of a corporation (no exemptions available) in a Chapter 11 is called "orderly liquidation". A second use of sale of an asset, whether it could be exempted or not, is to fund the plan. In order to present a plan that could be approved, it must meet several tests. Those tests include: "did the creditors receive in the plan, at least as much as they would in a liquidation?" and "did the debtor commit all of his or her net disposable income, for a minimum period of 3 years to the plan?" However, if the plan pays all creditors in full in a term less than 3 years, say, using the sale of property, it can be confirmed on that basis. Sale of a property in a plan would ordinarily allow the court to deny lift stay. That is, where a creditor wants to foreclose but the debtor has equity which will be extinguished with a forced sale, the court will give time to the debtor to market and sell the property. Making the secured creditor wait is usually contingent upon the existence of equity in the debtor as the debtor can "burn" equity with the increase in the payoff of the secured debt during the delay. Thus it is very important to have a accurate concept as to value to implement a strategy. This in not the activity for a novice debtor, a bankruptcy lawyer is strongly recommended.

Thomas Zimmerman