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RE: House sold
I spoke with the attorney this morning. He said I qualify for chapter 7 and that my disability is safe from garnishment and that I should wait to get the title to my motorhome van and get it registered in my name before filing, which is what I figured. It would look bad suddenly "acquire" (registering) the van AFTER filing chapter 7. I checked online and found that the tilt was issued by the state on Feb 14 but it probably takes a month to get it after that, hence not actually getting it yet. But once I get it and the guy signs it over to me so I can go insure and register it, I will quit paying the mortgage the following month and let it go on back.
He said it doesn't matter if I file before or after.
He said since I own so little (value wise) I should be able to keep everything.
He said his fee is $2,000 for chapter 7. Small price to pay to be free from another 31 years of mortgage (plus still owing for deferred payments/subsidy!)
One odd thing is that I read online to be careful about lawyers who offer payment plans for Chapter 7 which is exactly what he did... $2000 up front or $800 down and monthly payments. It's apparently borderline illegal and unethical: This is what I read: http://www.athensdebtrelief.com/2011/04/chapter-7-legal-fees-are-due-up-front.html
Maybe I misunderstood too, maybe he was saying they'll take payments until it's paid in full THEN file.. but that isn't how he came across as saying. He also mentioned something about a post dated check but I didn't pay much attention since that isn't how I do business.
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Cubey
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03/09/12 12:26pm |
Full-time RVing
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RE: House sold
My realtor said he is surprised (he used some other word I can't remember) that no one has actually come to tour my house. They drive by, call.. think about it, then decide they don't want to live on a "major" highway (2 lane, 55mph limit US highway). What did they expect? They drove past it and saw it! It's not like they didn't KNOW the location. I am getting the impression that it's a lost cause trying to sell it for as much as I need to, to get out from it.
I have an appointment Friday morning to discuss maybe doing bankruptcy (no charge consultation). I don't owe much credit card wise (about $800), so really the only thing I'd really be filing it for is any deficiency balance after a foreclosure. 3 months of mortgage payments would just about pay the lawyer's fees.
Ive already sold and gicen away so much of my stuff, there's really not much left. Some furniture, a craftsman rolling tool chest in the garage.. a cargo van I got for working out of (paid $1800), my beat up 93 escort (not worth much more than $400 probably), my class C van (paid $1200), a 2007 Yamaha scooter (paid $850) and that's about it.
I have a feeling I should be able to keep the motorhome, scooter and maybe even the van since the only other things I want to keep really is my laptop, my cell phone... clothes, linens, my hand tools and that's about it. My state allows you to choose the federal exemptions or state exemptions. From what I have read, federal will be the way to go. Since I won't be keeping the house, I will just list the things i want/need to keep under the wildcard exemptions. Up to $10k via Federal exemptions if I don't use the homestead exemption to help keep the house. I wouldn't get anywhere near $10k in belongings to keep.
I figure they might value the cargo van at $2,000, the scooter at $800-1000, the motorhome at maybe $2500 tops, laptop at maybe $800, hand tools $100 tops maybe. That's only $6400. The ford escort I could drive to the salvage yard and get at least $350 cash for.
If I can't keep the cargo van then fine, I'd let it go and not worry about it (even though I did just get it).
My main concerns are the motorhome, scooter, my laptop and my hand tools. After that, it would all be exempted anyway.. things like clothes, linens, appliances (microwave).
Being on SSDI, I think my income might be 100% protected under chapter 7 wiping out any deficiency balance.
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Cubey
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03/06/12 07:42pm |
Full-time RVing
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RE: Sprint vs. Verizon vs. AT&T
Ah.. it was my WIFI it was running inet from. So that must be true about AT&T. Learn something new every day. I don't see why I'd need both at once though honestly... but maybe that's just me. For biz purposes it might be needed more.
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Cubey
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02/14/12 09:30pm |
Technology Corner
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RE: Cloudy Headlights
Blue Magic Headlight Lens Restorer. It mostly talks about removing yellowing but it also clears up the hazing some too.
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_Headlight-Lens-Restorer-Blue-Magic-Products_7110159-P_N3312Y_T|GRP2074___
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Cubey
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02/14/12 07:57pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Sprint vs. Verizon vs. AT&T
The one advantage that AT&T has is that some of the iPhone features (being able to browse the web and use the phone at the same time) are only available on AT&T.
That seems to be incorrect. I just testing browsing on my 4G Verizon Android Samsung Stratosphere (in a 3G coverage area right now) and during a call I was able to pull up the browser and view websites.
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Cubey
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02/14/12 07:44pm |
Technology Corner
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RE: Cloudy Headlights
I bought a cheap bottle of cream stuff at Dollar General and it works pretty good. Not perfect or like new but it works well for the price. Makes a definite improvement. I used it on my 93 Escort and my 99 F150. No need on my Xplorer.. the whole lens replaces with the bulb. ;)
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Cubey
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02/14/12 07:31pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: cost of living on the road?
ok I know that there are going to be a lot of different answers to this question. But what does it cost for two people to live on the road? The doctor has put me on medical disability three years sooner than I had planed on retiring. My disability is going to give me about $1800 a month to live and travel on. is this possiable for two people or am I just living a pipe dream. Help Please
I live on roughly half that and I will be full timing.. so.. it's a matter of how you plan to budget your money. If you plan to stay in high priced rv parks every night it may not last you well. I got a Class B so I have slightly more freedom than those with a Class A or C since it's not quite as conspicuous. I guess to some degree and in the eyes of some, I will simply be living homelessly since I plan to not spend much toward RV parks or camping monthly. National forests will aid in this, plus 1/2 price camping at federal campgrounds and state parks in certain states. Plus the fact I will be able to get away with parking overnight someplace easier than a large A or C would be able to.
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Cubey
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02/12/12 09:41am |
Full-time RVing
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RE: House sold
Congrats! I have my home on the market right now too. My realtor called yesterday and said he has a showing today (the first one) around 2pm. Wish me luck! :)
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Cubey
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02/12/12 09:39am |
Full-time RVing
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RE: What Did You Do To Your Class B Today ?
Nice job on the repairs Cubey!
You have an interesting rig there. How many miles?
It shows something like 34k but it's a 5 digit odometer. It's likely to be 134k.. if not 234k. There is an oil change sticker on the door jam that says 91k miles back in 1991 or so.
The transmission was rebuilt last year and barely has any miles on it since then.
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Cubey
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02/04/12 06:10pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: What Did You Do To Your Class B Today ?
I went out today and put on the plumber's tape to secure the toilet drain pipe now it's nice and secure. Also attached the tether line for the cap.
Then I moved on to my furnace. I bought a new, rare thermocoupler for it from ebay ($25!) that has 2 blade connectors for wires. Must be some kind of safety function. Anyhow, replacing that didn't do the trick a month ago when I got it.
Today I took my air compressor over to the van and blew air into the controls of the heater, with the on/pilot/off valve taken apart.
I ended up having a weird problem getting the thermocoupler to thread back in at the thermostat controls.. so I grabbed the original and put it back.. threaded in fine.. so I figured I'd try it first.
Reassembled the on/pilot/off control valve wrong at first.. took me a little while to figure out the right way but finally did.
On first lighting try... it went out when I let go. Grr! I decided to try it again, figuring maybe it needed a little longer warm up time on the thermocoupler than the 30 seconds the instructions say. Lit it again... held it for another 15 to 20 seconds then let go ... SUCCESS!! It's working great now!
So I have a spare, hard to find thermocoupler for it. It's much longer than the original (the thin tubing part) but I could only one reliable source to even buy one.. ebay. Where there was ONE listed. Length shouldn't matter on it since it has a large open air area where the extra length can sit.
Also attached a cable hookup thing on the roof for the antenna hook up. Who ever put that antenna on... they just drilled a big hole and ran in coaxial and put a bit of silicon caulk around it.. which of course didn't seal worth a damn. But now it has a nice sealed connection. Looks a little funny because they put it on the slope so you can see it easily from the side but oh well. It's better than it was, for sure.
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Cubey
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02/04/12 05:16pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: What Did You Do To Your Class B Today ?
Got the toilet outlet all fixed! Cost me about $40 including a new miter box with saw. I only needed 4 inches out of a 24" ABS piece of pipe which was $12 by itself but that's how it goes. Still WAY cheaper than having a shop do the work for me. It sticks out about an inch further than I wanted it to. With the cap on, it sticks out past the running board by about half an inch. The piece sitting on the ground is what was original and was cut off. With the running boards, the outlet was too far set back in there, you had to get down on hands and knees to reach the cap. I used two 22.5 degree elbows to lower it down around the running board as you can see. The 4" of pipe I neded is between the two elbows. I just need to fit a block of wood between the running board and the pipe and use some plumber's tape (metal strapping) to secure the pipe so it doesn't bounce around, since it has no support at the end right now. Also need to drill a small hole and put a screw, washer and nut to secure the cap's tether line to the running board.
(NOTE: My van has a Thetford recirculating toilet. It's drain valve is inside at the toilet itself. That's why there isn't one at the outlet).
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v222/illiop/78dodge/new_toilet_outlet1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v222/illiop/78dodge/new_toilet_outlet2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v222/illiop/78dodge/new_toilet_outlet3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v222/illiop/78dodge/new_toilet_outlet4.jpg
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Cubey
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02/03/12 07:07pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: What Did You Do To Your Class B Today ?
First I partly installed the new CB mirror mount. It's just hand tightened for now. Still need to buy the cable for between the antenna and the radio.
Then I moved on to the toilet drain outlet. I bought a Thetford to Valterra adapter for the toilet outlet yesterday but I don't like how poorly the Thetford connection fits holds, so I will be returning it. Instead I cut off the end of the pipe (seems to be black PVC schedule 40.. strange!) and will be installing a Valterra connection on the end. I wanted to extend the pipe out further due to the aftermarket running board that was installed at some point, making the hose hookup being very hard to get at. So not only will I have a common Valterra hookup, but I will have it extended out further than it came from the factory due to the running board. Tomorrow I will go to Lowes for the generic pipe parts and then back to the RV shop for the Valterra part I need.
Lastly, I replaced a 120v outlet that was a bit worn out. It had an old dark brown 70's one that wouldn't keep things plugged in very well anymore. I put in a new almond color one that is much easier to see due to the dark fake wood cabinets. It was so annoying trying to find it and seeing which way to plug in 3 prong stuff because it's installed horizontally.
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Cubey
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02/02/12 04:04pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: What Did You Do To Your Class B Today ?
I ran a 10 gauge wire into the cabin from the battery isolator's switched 12v source for the purpose of feeding a CB radio to be installed and for an in-dash stereo install (for the memory). I may put a 12v outlet on it too since the van's outlet is constant. In-line fuses will be used.
I found an existing drilled hole that just needed a grommet. The wire ran through perfectly. Slightly loose but that's better than too snug.
I also installed a pair of 4-LED bulbs into the cluster. This GREATLY helped the poorly lit gauges. I have since ordered some 6-LED ones since it was still a little bit too dim for my taste. 6 LED is the biggest I can get in the kind that can fit into the cluster. Most have a plastic casing on them. The ones I got don't. They are just circuit boards with LEDs and metal pick-up strips for the power.
This shows how much of an improvment the LEDs made. The left (blue) side is the 4-LED bulb. The right (green) side is a (new!) regular incandescent bulb. The photo is NOT edited (aside from being cropped and overall brightened slightly). It's not a split-view of 2 photos put side by side.. that IS how the gauges looked with a mixture of LED and incandescent.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v222/illiop/78dodge/led_vs_reg.jpg
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Cubey
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01/27/12 12:09am |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Illegal Parking
Yes, that is the one thing I am dreading about this van I got. Backing was hard enough with a 97 Ford E150 conversion van (regular length). It's going to be murder with a 20ft long Class B! I have already tried to back around in my driveway that is very large and wide and I couldn't hardly tell distances worth a damn when in the van. I got out about 5 times to make sure I wasn't too close to a tree. The tree was a good 20ft away still. *LOL*
One of the first things I am going to buy (after getting it fully road worthy) is a backup camera.
I haven't driven a van in a few years so I'm sure I'll get used to it eventually. But odds are I will look for the largest parking lot available and always make sure I can pull through the space, preferably on the very outer edge of the parking lot. Even if that means, say in an urban environment, paying for two parking spaces if that is possible to do such as with parking meters and certain kinds of pay parking lots where you pay based on the space you are parked in.
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Cubey
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01/17/12 08:14pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Annoying converter/charger buzz
Old topic but thought I'd chime in anyway. I bought a refurbished one a few years ago and it still works fine. But it has always buzzed loudly unless there is a load on it. If I turn on even a single light, the buzzing completely stops. Also it seems to be only if the battery is fully charged or if no battery is present, with no load. Must have something to do with being idle, with no power draw.
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Cubey
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01/14/12 07:43pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Class B Campsite Photos - Let's See Them!
Quartzsite, AZ is one of our favorites. No Hookups but water and dump are available. I trust I did the photo thing right.
http://i938.photobucket.com/albums/ad222/GA_Boy/MVC-150F.jpg
Ha. I thought about pulling a beetle behind my van but... the transmissions in these 70s dodge vans wear out FAST if you tow with them I've read. I have a new trans so I don't wanna jinx it!) plus, I plan to do some urban van dwelling and a towed vehicle would spoil that. If I wanted a separate vehicle setup, I would have kept my truck and used my Shasta trailer.
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Cubey
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12/22/11 10:24pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Class B Campsite Photos - Let's See Them!
Not a class B.. but was a conversion van with pull down blinds for the windows and a bench seat that laid flat to a bed so it was borderline. :)
http://cubey.illiop.com/pics/albums/userpics/10001/normal_100_9568b.jpg width=640
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Cubey
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12/22/11 10:21pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: New owner of a 78 Dodge Xplorer
Quick update.. I mentioned this in another thread but will here too.
I found out today that the guy I bought it from CAN get it put in his name by doing TITLE ONLY, without actually registering it. It will cost me about $60 (for the sales tax when he bought it) but that's it.
I will have them mail the title to his name at my address. When I get it, I just get him to sign it it over to me and I take it and go register and title it in my name. I think I will go ahead and pay him $100 when he signs that title over to me for his cooperation regarding this.
I'll still be getting it for $1,440 ($60 less than he originally quote when I thought it had a title he could sign over to me) that way and I will have a free and clear title in my name with no muss, no fuss with bonded titles and all that crap. Plus since he's been nice and cooperative, he'll get closer to what his asking price was when he thought there weren't any title issues. Saves him having to put out any money at all with me paying his sales tax and he'll get another $100 on top of the $1300 I already paid him.
He said he is willing to do it, just a matter of when his boss will let him get off work early to get to the TX DMV before they close at 5. I haven't mentioned the extra $100 yet, I will when I get him there to title it in his name and have the DMV mail it to my address. Then I'll tell him that when I get it and he signs it over to me, I'll pay him another $100 for his time and cooperation.
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Cubey
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12/20/11 05:11pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Need photos of Dodge Xplorer sewer drain area
Yes, that sounds like exactly how mine is.
I think I may just pay an RV shop to do the tank for me. That way they can get the openings done properly and get it mounted so it doesn't fall out while driving down the road with a load of water in it. Even if it costs me $500, it'll be worth it to have it done properly. But I will do that very last since it's possible not to use the sinks or shower and still live in it for a while at first.
I found out today that I can get the title put in the guy's name I bought it from for only $60 (I'll have the new title mailed to my address) and then have him sign that title over to me so it can be placed in my name.
I'll pay him $20 for his trouble since he knocked $200 off the price for me to take care of any costs involved. I'll still up smelling like roses price wise.
Although, it seems it needs a new power converter. It's acting badly just like a used one I bought for my Shasta years ago. Powers up but has very low voltage and acts like it can't charge the battery. I think I may replace the glass fuse block with a modern blade fuse block. I hate glass fuses to no end. I may do so for he van's fuse panel as well if it's easy plug and pay for the fuse block.
Thankfully I know my way around wiring and plumbing somewhat from working on the Shasta and other things over the years.
By the time I'm done with it, I may end up having $4000 in it ..but, it has a new transmission worth $1200 so it'll still be worth it. Plus it's going to have a wealth of other new parts.
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Cubey
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12/20/11 02:25pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Need photos of Dodge Xplorer sewer drain area
I've seen a listing with quite a variety of tank sizes & shapes. I think it was in the big RV catalog that I got at a dealer. A lot of dealers have a mail-order catalog if they're _not_ Camping World affiliates. It's about 600 pages of RV and camping stuff. Ask for it at the parts counter. They may or may not charge $5-10 for it. Well worth having, especially for an older vehicle project. Once you find something in it, shop on-line for a better price.
The nearest camping world is about 2.5 hours from me unfortunately. I went online and ordered some kind of free one. 2-3 weeks delivery time it says.
I saw one on ebay with the hole already cut and a 3" outlet attached too on the end like I would need for around $250 shipped, close to the capacity of the original. I need to measure the area under the van for the tank so I know what size will fit though.
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Cubey
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12/20/11 07:18am |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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