Adam Smith walks into your office and announces that he is officially up to his eyeballs in debt. Specifically, he owes the following to the following people:
– $57,000 to Citi Bank in unsecured credit card debt
– $22,000 to Bank of America in unsecured credit card debt
– $5,000 to his neighbor Penelope, as Penelope lent him that amount a few months ago interest-free.
– $11,500 to Ford Motor Company on a car loan that he used to buy a Ford Focus two years ago.
– $178,000 on his first mortgage to the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA or “Fannie Mae”). The loan is secured by his house at 678 Walnut Street, Winsdor, New Liberty 66666.
– $18,750 to Wells Fargo Bank on a home equity line of credit that is also secured by his house
– $870 to Home Depot that he borrowed to buy a riding lawn mower two months ago. He bought the lawn mower for $1,200.
– $8,400 to his ex-wife, Sandy, in back alimony and child support payments, for which he has been in arrears for a couple of months.
– $7,600 in back taxes and penalties that he still owes the IRS from failing to pay his taxes for the last two years.
Adam tells you that he owns the following assets:
– His house at 678 Walnut Street, Winsdor, New Liberty 66666. He estimates the house’s fair market value as approximately $220,000.
– A checking account at Liberty Bank, account number 98765432. Its balance is about $780.
– His Ford Focus (referenced above). He estimates the car’s current market value at about $10,000.
– Hi riding lawn mower. He estimates that it’s worth about $1,000 now
– A Baume and Mercier wristwatch that he received as a gift several years ago. He thinks it’s worth at least $3,000, but he’s not sure exactly how much it’s worth
– An Individual Retirement Account with about $18,000 in securities held in it.
– He owns a patent on a device that he invested called the “anti-gravity umbrella.” He has no idea how much it’s worth, if anything, as no one has, as of yet, offered to produce and market the product.
– Clothing. The only pieces of clothing worth anything of significance are a suit he bought last year for $400 and a nice trench coat he bought 5 months ago for $320.
Assume that New Liberty allows a homestead exemption up to $50,000 in equity for a residence of the debtor.
Adam tells you that although he works and earns $15,000, right now, he is spending more money than he makes every month, and that’s with making only the minimum payments on his credit cards and home equity loan. He has no interest in trying to negotiate or reorganize his debts. He just wants to get rid of them, to the extent possible.
Please prepare an appropriate bankruptcy petition for Adam, along with all of the appropriate schedules.