Normal Living Expenses

[dave7250]

Can anyone provide me with a list of "Normal Living Expenses"? Maybe I can find things I haven't thought of yet.

 

[kopes]

States are different and even the trustee you get may not consider some things, but here is what I included for expenses in my BK7.

Rent or home mortage
Electricity and heating fuel
water and sewer
telephone (included cell phone here)
cable
garbage
internet
home maintence (repairs and upkeep)
food
clothing
laundry and dry cleaning
transportation (not including car payments)
medical and dental expenses
recreation, clubs and entertainment, newspapers, magazines, etc.
charitable contributions
insurance (not deducted from wages or included in home mortage payments)
installment payments (this is where my student loan payment went)
alimony, maintenance or support paid to others
payments for support of additional dependents not living at your home
regular payments from operation of business, profession, or farm

then there was a place for Other - my lawyer added personal care/hair cuts and school lunch here.

Amounts will be different depending on the area you live in. The trustee I had lived in the same area, so he questioned those people who had really high amounts. One couple was ordered to provide their heat/electric bills for the past year.

 

[dave7250]

Thank you so much for your reply. This certainly does help. Can one really claim an entertainment expense? It would seem that anyone who could afford any entertainment could hardly justify the need for bankruptcy.

Also if anyone else can add to the list please do so.

 

[kopes]

Yes, you can claim entertainment but keep it low, around $50. My lawyer explained that they do not expect you to live like a pauper. These are supposed to be "normal" living expenses. Normal people go to a movie every once in awhile, eat out occasionally, and read newspapers and magazines. I listed my entertainment as $70 because I have two teenage children who like to go places with their friends. The trustee never said a word.

 

[dave7250]

Maybe they don't expect you to live like a pauper but that's the way it seems like I have lived for a some time now. I guess that is the reason I have no idea about what amounts "normal" folks spend. Thanks for you help. Just trying to get a handle on everything.

 

[kopes]

Believe I know what you mean by living like a pauper, but when you take away all the debt that can be discharged, there is light at the end of the tunnel. I hadn't actually seen a movie at the movie theater in about a year before I filed because I couldn't afford it. I was also feeding my kids on about $35 a week before filing. These are the reasons we need to file. Figure out what you would spend if you didn't have all the debt and then list that as your living expense. My lawyer really helped me out with this.

 

[leafinator]

From someone who's been through it let me also say this: figure out what led you to your financial situation and change it. A vast majority of those who file for bankruptcy end up in the same financial position because they go crazy having money again. Find a good class and learn all you can about handling money so you don't have to live like a pauper again. I went crazy and got into debt again before taking some classes and learning the error of my ways. Things are slowly improving.

 

[LdiJ]

Thank you so much for your reply. This certainly does help. Can one really claim an entertainment expense? It would seem that anyone who could afford any entertainment could hardly justify the need for bankruptcy.

Also if anyone else can add to the list please do so.

Yes, you can include an intertainment expense, as long as its modest.