Calculating Secured Debt Expenses and Priority Claims

The means test form has a section titled “Other Payments.” For the purposes of this section, only debts that are required for the support of the debtor and their dependents may be used. A bankruptcy attorney in Lake County can help define these for you.

Cure Amounts and Priority Claims

In the event that the debtor is in arrears on a secured debt that’s required for the support of their family, the cure amount, or amount that’s required to bring the account current, must be provided. The total cure amount is then divided by 60 and added to the debtor’s monthly expenses as a part of the means test.

From there, the debt on all priority claims must be calculated by taking the total and dividing it by 60. This applies to priority claims with terms of 60 months or less. For priority claims with terms of more than 60 months, the monthly payment is used instead.

For the purposes of the means test, only the priority debts due at the time of filing may be used.

In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the cost of administrative expenses must also be listed in this section. However, the amount that’s deducted may not exceed 10 percent of the plan’s projected monthly payment amount. It is okay to use a reasonable estimate for this.

Hire a Skilled Bankruptcy Attorney in Lake County

Before worrying about completing the means test, you need to retain a competent Lake County bankruptcy lawyer. Call Merideth Nagel, P.A., Attorney at Law at 352-404-4634 or toll-free at 877-580-6868 today.