Bankruptcy Growth Slows a Bit

Another sign that economic growth may be lifting more consumers out of financial problems is that the growth in bankruptcy filings has slowed a bit in recent weeks. As of the week ending September 20, 2003 (week 38 of this calendar year), total personal bankruptcy filings for the calendar year were up 8.0% compared to the end of the same week in 2002. To be sure, we are still on track for another record filing year, since any increase over last year's record total will constitute a new record. But, the news is better than it was back in June, at which point the cumulative total for this calendar year was more than 10% above the same point in 2002. These statistics are compiled directly from courthouse filings and are available to us courtesy of Lundquist Consulting (Burlingame, CA). More information is available at the firm's National Bankruptcy Research Center website: www.NBKRC.com.

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