Bankruptcy filings decrease in 2011 fiscal year

According to a recent release from the American Bankruptcy Institute, the total number of bankruptcy filings in the 2011 fiscal year decreased significantly from the number of filings during the 2010 fiscal year. Both business and consumer bankruptcy filings decreased, which analysts say is a promising step.

The report states that there were a total of 1,467,221 bankruptcies filed during the 2011 fiscal year, which ran from September 30, 2010 to the same date in 2011. In comparison, there were 1,596,355 bankruptcy filings made during the 2010 fiscal year. This marks an 8 percent decrease in bankruptcies filed during the most recent year.

Consumer bankruptcies made up a significant portion of the decrease, according to the report. In the first nine months of 2010, there were a total of 1,179,572 Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings in the U.S. During the same time period in 2011, there were a total of 1,058,218 consumer bankruptcies filed, which was an 11 percent drop.

Of those million or so consumer bankruptcy filings during the first nine months of 2011, about 750,000 were Chapter 7 filings and about 300,000 were Chapter 13 filings. This marked a 13 percent and 7 percent decrease, respectively, from 2010 numbers.

According to ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano, these numbers mean that Americans have been able to better control their finances and debt in recent months, despite a weak economy. “The decline in consumer bankruptcies is the residue of a sustained debt deleveraging by U.S. households,” he said.

If you need help managing your debt in or out of bankruptcy, it may be beneficial to contact an experienced Atlanta bankruptcy attorney or another trusted financial professional.

Source: American Bankruptcy Institute, “Total U.S. FY bankruptcies down 8 percent over FY 2010; filings fall across all chapters,” Nov. 8, 2011