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Personal bankruptcy up 30% nationally

Posted by Charlie Kilo on July 10th, 2008

Its just the beginning:

Utah may have escaped much of the pain from the nationwide economic downturn so far, but thousands of the state’s residents have not been as lucky.
    The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Utah reported Wednesday that 4,216 Utahns and businesses in the state filed for bankruptcy protection during the first half of this year, a 42 percent increase over the first six months of 2007.
    “Our [bankruptcy] numbers continue to increase,” U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Utah clerk David Sime said, adding the number of petitions filed with the court appears to be on a steady upward trend.
    Nationally, U.S. consumer bankruptcy filings increased 30 percent during the first six months of 2008, compared with the same period a year ago, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute, a Virginia-based organization that provides research and analysis of issues related to insolvencies.
    “The overall trend of rising bankruptcies reflects the growing financial strain felt by U.S. households burdened by high debt, rising mortgage costs and falling home values,” said Sam Gerdano, the ABI’s executive director.
    Bankruptcy filings nationwide plummeted in 2005 after Congress adopted reform legislation intended to make it more difficult for consumers to avoid paying their debts. Since that initial plunge, however, bankruptcy filings in Utah and the other states have increased significantly.

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