According to statistics from the Administrative Offices of the U.S. Courts, the total number of bankruptcy filings increased by 13 percent in the 12 months ending on September 30, 2023. Business bankruptcies during this time increased by approximately 30 percent.
Annual bankruptcy filings were 433,650 as of September 30, 2023, as compared to the 383,810 in September 30, 2022.
Factors contributing to the uptick in filings include rising interest rates and inflation.
Personal bankruptcy filings are down, leaving many financial analysts questioning whether the drop in filings can be attributed to financial relief offered from governmental pandemic relief programs or to other economic factors. This stimulus relief offered consumers a much-needed financial boost, but the question remains how long this boost will hold off future bankruptcy filings.
Bankruptcy filings are on the decline, according to a recent report. Statistics released by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, reveal bankruptcy filings dropped 38.1 percent for the 12-month period ending March 31, 2021. This dramatic drop in filings coincides with the COVID-19 pandemic, which first disrupted the economy in March 2020.
Bankruptcy filings fell for both personal and business bankruptcies. Non-business filings fell by a total of 38.8 percent, while business filings fell 13.9 percent.
With about one out of every nine Miami-Dade workers — and nearly one out of every six in Broward — still out of a job due to the coronavirus pandemic, a question lingers in South Florida: How long can the region stave off an even worse economic disaster?
After a rough start, Florida’s unemployment system has come online to furnish tens of thousands of local workers with as much as $875 per week in unemployment insurance — the state’s standard $275, plus an extra $600 through the emergency U.S. CARES Act passed in March. But Florida’s unemployment insurance lasts only 12 weeks. And the extra $600 from Congress is set to expire July 31. Greater Miami ranks as one of the hardest hit metros in the country, thanks to its reliance on a tourism industry that has instantly dried up.
Bankruptcy filings have taken another plunge, marking a 10-year low for any 12-month period, according to the latest numbers from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AOUSC).
Annual filings totaled 790,830 through September, compared with 805,580 in the previous year. This was the lowest number of bankruptcy filings for any 12-month period since June 2007, according to the AOUSC. However, the statistics show that Chapter 12 filings totaled 508, an increase from 458 in 2016.
The 2005 amendments to the Bankruptcy Code made Chapter 7, 11 and 13 bankruptcies more complex and expensive, but did not do the same for Chapter 12. The national wave of bankruptcy filings that began in 2008 reached a peak in September 2010 when nearly 1.6 million bankruptcies were filed, according to the AOUSC.
Breakdown of Filings by Chapter for the 12-month period ending Sept. 30, 2017 are as follows:
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If you are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade Garcia McMaken has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade Garcia McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.
Approximately 6 million Americans will have their bankruptcies disappear from their credit reports over the next five years. Chapter 7 personal bankruptcies peaked in 2010 during the housing market crash then decreased over the next few years before leveling off in late 2015 – 2016.
The number of Chapter 7 bankruptcies, the most common type of bankruptcy, which involves no repayment plan and in most cases is a complete discharge of debt, increased to nearly 1.14 million, in 2010.
Now seven years later, millions of Americans are seeing these bankruptcies fall off their credit reports, improving their credit scores and allowing them to re-enter the housing market and purchase a home.
Credit scores reached a record high this spring, which we discussed in a recent blog. This will create even more buyers in an already competitive market. With home prices continuing to increase as inventory levels drop, experts do not expect it to let up anytime soon.
Hispanic homeownership could also see an increase in the next few years as the President and his administration seek to “dismantle” the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, which could give lenders more freedom to originate loans outside traditional qualified mortgages.
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If you are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.
As legislators and the President focus their efforts on the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act, they may want to keep in mind the financial consequences. Since its inception, far fewer Americans have filed for personal bankruptcy. Personal bankruptcy filings are down 50 percent since 2010. Coincidentally, those same seven years represent the time frame when the 2010 federal law designed to provide health insurance coverage for the majority of Americans took effect.
Personal bankruptcy filings have dropped from 1,536,799 in 2010 to 770,846 in 2016. Medical bills remain the leading cause of personal bankruptcy. Unlike other debts, medical bills are often unexpected, involuntary, and can be for very large amounts.
Two other contributing factors add to the decline: an improved economy and changes to bankruptcy laws in 2005 that made it more difficult and costly to file. However, expanded health coverage played a significant role in the recent decline of personal bankruptcy filings.
Some of the most important financial protections of the Affordable Care Act apply to all consumers, whether they get their coverage through Obamacare or the private insurance marketplace. These provisions include mandated coverage for any pre-existing conditions, an end to annual and lifetime coverage caps. It also allows young people to be covered by a family policy until age 26.
The first attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act was in March, failed to gain enough Congressional support and never came to a vote. Then in April, details of a new replacement plan were released. Although President Trump has said that the new version will cover pre-existing conditions, the revised law gives states discretion to allow insurance companies to increase rates for consumers with an existing illness.
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Those who have experienced illness or injury and found themselves overwhelmed with medical debt should contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney. In bankruptcy, medical bills are considered general unsecured debts just like credit cards. This means that medical bills do not receive priority treatment and can easily be discharged in bankruptcy. Bankruptcy laws were created to help people resolve overwhelming debt and gain a fresh financial start. Bankruptcy attorney Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.
Nationwide bankruptcy filings were a little higher in August 2016 compared to a year earlier, breaking an ongoing trend of decline. Bankruptcy filings totaled 68,495 in August, which was an increase from July’s total of 61,340, and was approximately 1.1 percent higher than August 2015’s total of 67,777 (an increase of 718).
Year-to-date, there have been 528,397 bankruptcy filings nationwide for the first eight months of 2016 (about 66,049 per month), down from 2015’s year-to-date total through the end of August of 562,579 (about 70,322 per month), according to August 2016 AACER bankruptcy data reported by Epiq Systems.
August’s total of 68,495 bankruptcy filings was just over half of the peak total for the month of August recorded in 2010 of 135,771. The state with the highest cumulative filings for the first eight months of 2016 was California with 49,564. Illinois was second in year-to-date filings with 36,371. The next three states with the most cumulative filings were Georgia (30,751), Florida (30,640), and Ohio (24,986).
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If you are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com
Personal bankruptcy filings fell to levels not seen since before the Great Recession of 2007, according the American Bankruptcy Institute. However, this is not the case for some parts of the country. Recent federal data from U.S. courts reveals the median bankruptcy rate among the 587 counties examined was 224 filings per 100,000 residents. Among the 50 states and Washington, D.C., the median bankruptcy rate was 226 filings per 100,000 residents.
Six of the 10 states and eight of the 10 counties with the highest personal bankruptcy filings were in the South. Many of the areas had lower to median annual incomes. Eight of the 10 states with the highest rates of bankruptcy filings had annual household incomes lower than the 2014 U.S. median of $53,657.
Another downside, states with the highest bankruptcy rates offer the least amount of protections for consumers. For example, Alabama and Kentucky, allow debt collectors to seize nearly everything a debtor owns, according to the National Consumer Law Center.
These are the states with the highest rates of personal bankruptcy filings:
Tennessee, 553 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Alabama, 529 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Georgia, 483 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Illinois, 432 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Utah, 392 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Indiana, 387 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Mississippi, 361 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Kentucky, 345 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Arkansas, 344 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
Ohio, 322 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents
While seeking relief through bankruptcy may not have been your first choice, it may be your best financial strategy, when compared to the alternatives of wage garnishment, lawsuits and endless collection calls. In addition, depending on the type of bankruptcy filing, there is no more overwhelming debt. The majority of personal bankruptcy filings are for Chapter 7, which erases most unsecured debts, such as your credit card debt and medical bills.
If you are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.
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Bankruptcy filings are down 11 percent compared to the 12-month period ending March 31, 2014, according to statistics released by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. March 2013 bankruptcy filings totaled 1,170,324 compared to 1,038,280 bankruptcy filings in the 12-month period ending March 31, 2014.
However, filings in April and May of this year have been most similar to the number of filings in April and May of 2013. The May 2014 daily bankruptcy filing rate was 4,079, which was a 7.0% decline on a year-over-year basis. There have been just over 405,500 bankruptcy filings in the first five months of 2014. With these latest numbers, the year-over-year bankruptcy filing rate has declined for forty-three straight months.
Some financial experts attribute the decline in consumer filings to “a low-interest rate environment” and consumers utilizing more government assistance programs, such as the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), which has helped many underwater homeowners.
If you are in a financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.
http://news.uscourts.gov/bankruptcy-filings-down-11-percent-march-2014
http://www.creditslips.org/creditslips/2014/06/900000-bankruptcy-filings-this-year-maybe.html
