KPLU Local News
(2009-07-27)
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SEATTLE, WA
(KPLU) -
The number of people filing for bankruptcy in Washington went up by more than fifty percent during the first six months of this year, by 52%, to be exact. The statewide increase is certainly dramatic, but it's been happening all over the country. People who are underwater on homes can sometimes stave off a foreclosure by filing for chapter 13. Lance Barton is with the data firm AACER, which tracks bankruptcy statistics throughout the U.S. He says Washington's current rate overall isn't so bad, relatively speaking. Places like Nevada and Tennessee are the worst off. Our per capita ranking for the first half of 2009 is pretty average. It's the 24th highest in the country.
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"But if you look on the greatest annual per capital increase, Washington is ninth. So, Washington is moving up pretty quick," Barton says.
In King County, for example, there were 601 bankruptcy filings last month - an increase of nearly 70 percent compared to June 2008. Snohomish county saw an 84 percent increase, with 309 new filings last month.
State economists say the increases sound scary - especially since going bankrupt got a lot harder in 2005. But they say these bankruptcies are still a tiny percentage of the population overall. Eric Swenson is with Washington's economic and revenue forecast council. He's not surprised by the surge in bankruptcies.
"These numbers are from the first half of the year and we've already seen in real time, the effects of these," Swenson says. "And I think the pattern you're seeing -- of where you see the biggest increase -- kind of matches the patterns where the biggest house price increases were. You know, if you bought at the top of the market, you might owe thirty percent more than your house is worth."
He says bankruptcy rates may continue to go up for a while, but he still thinks the worst is over. Washington's economic forecast council is predicting the state economy will bottom out by the end of this year.
(to hear the story as delivered by Bellamy Pailthorp, click "play" above.)
For more information:
How Bankruptcy Can Help With Foreclosure
Bankruptcy Law Research Guide for King County
American Bankruptcy Institute
Seattle Times' Graphic: Washington Bankruptcies, By Region
AACER
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