Oaks Farms Realtor Files for Bankruptcy

John McMonigle—a Newport Beach-based real estate agent whose top-selling McMonigle Group Inc. is listing the at $19.9 million—has filed for bankruptcy protection, according to news reports.

In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition filed in Santa Ana on Friday, McMonigle listed debts of $50 million to $100 million, according to an Orange County Business Journal report. The individual petition states that McMonigle has $1 million to $10 million in assets, according to the Business Journal.

The Oaks Farms is owned by Joan Irvine Smith, the great granddaughter of Orange County pioneer James Irvine. It's a 20-acre show-jumping and equestrian breeding facility.

A statement obtained by the Orange County Register said the bankruptcy filing is due to "an ongoing stalemate" with lenders in a real estate development business that is unrelated to the McMonigle Group's real estate sales. The statement said the brokerage and sales end of the business "will continue normal operations."