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Bankruptcies Rising, but More Slowly
The latest quarterly report from the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts contained mostly bad news, but also provided some reason to be cautiously optimistic about filing trends in the coming months. First the bad news: non-business (personal) bankruptcies set another new 12-month record for the year ending September 30, 2003 with 1,625,813 petitions filed. Filings were up 7.8% from the 12-month period ending one year earlier. Chapter 7 bankruptcies (in which individuals are allowed to keep certain exempt property while any remaining assets are sold to pay off unsecured creditors) continued to make up about 71% of all filings. This proportion has remained essentially unchanged for more than a decade. Out of 91 judicial districts in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, all but 6 experienced an increase in filing volume during the 12 months ending in September 2003. The table below provides detailed statistics on the number of filings and growth rates by judicial district.
The chart below displays the year-over-year rate of change in personal bankruptcy filings, by quarter. It also reveals the glimmer of good news. Filings during the third quarter of 2003 (3 months ending September 30) were up only 3.2% over the same period in 2002, which means that the growth in bankruptcy filings is slowing.
Printer-Friendly Chart
| Personal Bankruptcies by State and Judicial District for the 12-Month Period Ending September 30, 2003 |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Filings as of 9/30/2003 |
% Change in Total 9/30/2002-9/30/2003 |
% Chapter 7 as of 9/30/2003 | |
| Total | 1,625,813 | 7.8% | 71.1% |
| Alabama | 42,048 | 2.7% | 48.1% |
| Middle | 8,894 | -5.6% | 49.6% |
| North | 25,666 | 5.5% | 49.4% |
| South | 7,488 | 4.1% | 41.8% |
| Alaska | 1,414 | 7.1% | 92.0% |
| Arizona | 31,220 | 11.5% | 80.3% |
| Arkansas | 23,923 | 6.5% | 59.6% |
| East | 15,387 | 6.7% | 54.2% |
| West | 8,536 | 6.2% | 69.4% |
| California | 141,457 | -2.2% | 83.2% |
| Central | 77,131 | -6.4% | 85.7% |
| East | 30,658 | 1.6% | 85.2% |
| North | 21,651 | 11.4% | 71.9% |
| South | 12,017 | -4.8% | 82.1% |
| Colorado | 24,718 | 25.2% | 89.4% |
| Connecticut | 12,084 | 7.2% | 83.0% |
| District of Columbia | 2,323 | -5.7% | 71.5% |
| Delaware | 3,427 | 14.8% | 59.2% |
| Florida | 93,852 | 6.1% | 71.9% |
| Middle | 54,908 | 8.2% | 71.8% |
| North | 6,994 | 10.7% | 80.3% |
| South | 31,950 | 1.8% | 70.1% |
| Georgia | 78,528 | 6.3% | 45.5% |
| Middle | 18,021 | 2.0% | 46.5% |
| North | 44,634 | 8.8% | 51.3% |
| South | 15,873 | 4.7% | 27.9% |
| Hawaii | 3,843 | -16.9% | 87.6% |
| Idaho | 9,384 | 11.7% | 87.1% |
| Illinois | 85,749 | 8.7% | 75.0% |
| Central | 16,274 | 7.3% | 86.0% |
| North | 59,647 | 8.1% | 72.3% |
| South | 9,828 | 14.6% | 72.9% |
| Indiana | 54,956 | 5.7% | 80.2% |
| North | 21,021 | 3.2% | 83.7% |
| South | 33,935 | 7.4% | 78.1% |
| Iowa | 12,252 | 10.0% | 94.9% |
| North | 4,795 | 12.7% | 96.2% |
| South | 7,457 | 8.3% | 94.1% |
| Kansas | 15,883 | 11.3% | 80.1% |
| Kentucky | 29,244 | 10.5% | 82.3% |
| East | 13,046 | 11.9% | 86.2% |
| West | 16,198 | 9.4% | 79.3% |
| Louisiana | 28,651 | 9.7% | 61.6% |
| East | 10,023 | 6.6% | 67.9% |
| Middle | 3,895 | 7.9% | 72.5% |
| West | 14,733 | 12.4% | 54.5% |
| Maine | 4,493 | 2.9% | 92.0% |
| Maryland | 34,367 | 0.1% | 66.3% |
| Massachusetts | 17,774 | 6.8% | 86.2% |
| Michigan | 61,547 | 18.9% | 70.2% |
| East | 44,803 | 20.8% | 67.6% |
| West | 16,744 | 14.0% | 77.2% |
| Minnesota | 19,127 | 7.3% | 83.8% |
| Mississippi | 22,554 | 3.4% | 67.8% |
| North | 8,323 | 4.6% | 69.6% |
| South | 14,231 | 2.8% | 66.8% |
| Missouri | 37,596 | 16.2% | 73.1% |
| East | 20,113 | 16.1% | 66.8% |
| West | 17,483 | 16.2% | 80.3% |
| Montana | 4,239 | 6.5% | 89.2% |
| Nebraska | 8,313 | 13.7% | 78.1% |
| Nevada | 20,361 | 9.2% | 75.2% |
| New Hampshire | 4,198 | 14.4% | 89.9% |
| New Jersey | 42,222 | 5.5% | 64.4% |
| New Mexico | 9,161 | 10.2% | 91.2% |
| New York | 73,291 | 8.7% | 79.7% |
| East | 25,624 | 3.4% | 77.7% |
| North | 17,051 | 9.4% | 79.3% |
| South | 16,201 | 13.5% | 87.0% |
| West | 14,415 | 12.9% | 75.3% |
| North Carolina | 38,289 | 8.4% | 49.3% |
| East | 15,700 | 7.6% | 51.1% |
| Middle | 12,339 | 8.2% | 44.2% |
| West | 10,250 | 9.8% | 52.8% |
| North Dakota | 2,162 | 12.6% | 96.1% |
| Ohio | 86,389 | 15.9% | 79.4% |
| North | 46,407 | 18.1% | 82.6% |
| South | 39,982 | 13.5% | 75.8% |
| Oklahoma | 26,111 | 12.6% | 89.8% |
| East | 5,050 | 14.2% | 92.4% |
| North | 7,280 | 20.3% | 91.6% |
| West | 13,781 | 8.5% | 87.9% |
| Oregon | 24,009 | 6.6% | 88.1% |
| Pennsylvania | 57,321 | 10.0% | 69.0% |
| East | 25,414 | 5.5% | 55.6% |
| Middle | 13,373 | 12.6% | 76.1% |
| West | 18,534 | 14.7% | 82.2% |
| Rhode Island | 4,667 | -2.0% | 92.4% |
| South Carolina | 16,195 | 5.5% | 43.2% |
| South Dakota | 2,744 | 7.6% | 94.1% |
| Tennessee | 65,359 | 5.4% | 48.7% |
| East | 20,232 | 5.7% | 63.3% |
| Middle | 16,289 | 8.0% | 62.1% |
| West | 28,838 | 3.9% | 30.9% |
| Texas | 86,280 | 12.4% | 53.2% |
| East | 12,618 | 6.2% | 57.3% |
| North | 29,527 | 9.1% | 50.2% |
| South | 24,379 | 21.9% | 52.1% |
| West | 19,756 | 10.9% | 56.6% |
| Utah | 21,948 | 5.2% | 68.3% |
| Vermont | 1,835 | 9.7% | 88.0% |
| Virginia | 42,886 | 2.9% | 72.6% |
| East | 30,448 | 2.3% | 68.6% |
| West | 12,438 | 4.1% | 82.4% |
| Washington | 40,192 | 6.6% | 80.2% |
| East | 10,351 | 6.0% | 76.7% |
| West | 29,841 | 6.8% | 81.5% |
| West Virginia | 10,782 | 11.2% | 94.8% |
| North | 4,602 | 12.5% | 94.1% |
| South | 6,180 | 10.3% | 95.3% |
| Wisconsin | 27,664 | 18.3% | 83.3% |
| East | 18,861 | 19.0% | 81.3% |
| West | 8,803 | 16.8% | 87.6% |
| Wyoming | 2,464 | 12.4% | 92.7% |
| Guam | 332 | -11.2% | 85.5% |
| NMI | 19 | -13.6% | 78.9% |
| Puerto Rico | 13,917 | 3.2% | 28.7% |
| Virgin Islands | 49 | -3.9% | 71.4% |
| Circuit | |||
| 1st | 45,049 | 5.0% | 70.0% |
| 2nd | 87,210 | 8.5% | 80.3% |
| 3rd | 103,019 | 8.3% | 66.8% |
| 4th | 142,519 | 4.5% | 63.2% |
| 5th | 137,485 | 10.3% | 57.4% |
| 6th | 242,539 | 12.9% | 69.2% |
| 7th | 168,369 | 9.2% | 78.0% |
| 8th | 106,117 | 11.0% | 75.9% |
| 9th | 276,470 | 2.3% | 82.6% |
| 10th | 100,285 | 13.2% | 83.7% |
| 11th | 214,428 | 5.5% | 57.5% |
| States and territories in each circuit: | |||
| 1st: ME, MA, NH, RI, PR | |||
| 2nd: CT, NY, VT | |||
| 3rd: DE, NJ, PA, VI | |||
| 4th: MD, NC, SC, VA, WV | |||
| 5th: LA, MS, TX | |||
| 6th: KY, MI, OH, TN | |||
| 7th: IL, IN, WI | |||
| 8th: AR, IA, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD | |||
| 9th: AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR, WA, GUAM, NMI | |||
| 10th: CO, KS, NM, OK, UT, WY | |||
| 11th: AL, FL, GA | |||
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