The Case of Tamika Davis

This is the case of Tamika Davis who hails from Chicago, Illinois.  She is into talk about debt relief either a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy preferably.  She has never filed a bankruptcy case before.  She is not a homeowner.  She does have a landlord and she is on a month to month lease.  She has a Buick that she co-owns with her boyfriend but she is not really sure if she’s on the title so she’s going to get back to me with that information.
In terms of personal property, she has a checking account at Chase Bank.  She has minor household goods worth approximately $1000 and minor clothing worth approximately $500.  She does expect to receive a tax refund of approximately $3500 per year.  And she does not have the ability to sue anybody for personal injury or workers compensation.
She is a single mother and she has a minor child who is 10 years old.  She is currently working at Harris and Harris as a customer service rep and she has been doing that for the past two years, earning approximately $28,000 per year.  In addition to her income, she also receives Social Security income for her son at the rate of $412 per month.  So her gross monthly income from all sources is approximately $1912.
When we looked at her expenses, she pays $650 for rent.  Her electric and gas is $75 per month.  Her cellular phone bill is $200 per month.  Cable television is $160 per month.  Food is $400 per month.  She spends $40 per month in clothing.  Laundry and dry cleaning amounts to $60 per month.  She spent about $125 a month on recreation and she has childcare expense of $117 per month.
In the past three years, she has averaged between $28,000-$25,000 per year and she is also receives approximately $4700 during the last three years for Social Security for her son.  She did have a prior address that she lived two years ago in Chicago as well.  There is one co-debtor on her vehicle and also there are some parking tickets that might be tied to that vehicle.  She does not owe any student loans and she does not have any income tax debt.
In terms of debt, it is credit card debts of approximately $600, medical debt of approximately $4000 and a judgment of $5000.  She also has past-due utility bills of $2500 and a personal loan of $1500.
Based on what I am hearing and what I see, I would recommend Ms. Davis file a Chapter 7 fresh start.  Keep the property that she has, eliminate the debt and get back on her feet.