Local bankruptcy filings surpass year-ago figures

12/2/2006

For the first time this year, northwest Ohio bankruptcy filings surpassed in a month the number filed at the same time last year.

There were 352 petitions, mostly from individuals and couples, last month, up from 45 a year ago for the 21 counties covered by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Toledo. Through November, there were 3,498 filings for the year, down from 16,801 a year ago.

Cases this year have generally been 300 to 400 each month. Last year, filings soared before the Oct. 17, 2005, effective date of a reform law that made it tougher and more expensive to file for forgiveness of bills and other debts. After the law was enacted, filings dropped to almost nothing.