If you are considering bankruptcy, you may wonder if you fit the description of the common bankruptcy filer.

According to The Fragile Middle Class: Americans in Debt by Elizabeth Warren, Harvard Law School and Smith Business Solutions:

• Couples filing jointly make-up 44% of all bankruptcy filings
• 30% are women filing bankruptcy alone
• 26% of the bankruptcy filers are men who are filing alone
• The average age of a bankruptcy filer is 38
• Another statistic says the most bankruptcy filers are slightly more educated than the general population
• Two out of three bankruptcy filers have lost a job
• Half of all bankruptcy filers have experienced a serious health problem
• 91% of bankruptcy filers have suffered a job loss, medical event or divorce
• The states that have the highest bankruptcy rates are Tennessee, Utah, Georgia, and Alabama

The US Government provides additional statistics on bankruptcy filers including the mean scheduled debt of both Chapter 7 bankruptcy and Chapter 13 bankruptcy filers per state which can be found at this web site.

It’s ok if you do not fit the description of a common bankruptcy filer.  As an Indianapolis Bankruptcy Attorney, I have seen debtors of all ages, from eighteen to over seventy, seeking advice on how to address financial issues.  The important thing to remember is that you are not alone.  Although the number of Indiana bankruptcies has decreased from 2010 to 2011, there were still over 30,000 bankruptcies filed in this State alone with the majority of those occurring in the southern district of the State.

According to a recent Indianapolis Business Journal article, the number of Chapter 7 bankruptcy and Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings has decreased for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011, from the 2010 fiscal year.  However, new bankruptcy filings in the Southern District of Indiana, which includes Indianapolis bankruptcies, still totaled 24,727 for the fiscal year.

Indiana is currently ranked sixth in the nation, down from fourth, for the number of Chapter 7 bankruptcy filings and ranks eleventh, down from tenth, in the nation for the number of Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings.

The decrease in new filings can be partially attributed to the willingness of creditors to delay lawsuit collection activities against debtors because the difficulty trying to collect judgments from unemployed debtors.  Creditors are more reluctant to spend money pursuing lawsuits if they aren’t going to be able to recover.  Indiana is following the national trend where overall bankruptcies are down eight percent from the previous fiscal year.

As a dedicated Indianapolis bankruptcy lawyer, attorney Scott Kainrath, personally reviews every potential bankruptcy in great detail to make a determination if filing bankruptcy is the best option.  The timing of bankruptcy filing can potentially save a debtor hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars.   In many cases bankruptcy is not the best option.  At Kainrath Law Firm, P.C., we also assist debtors with debt settlement.  Many times we are able to negotiate debts down to a fraction of their original amount, allowing bankruptcy to avoided altogether.

If you are unsure as to whether filing bankruptcy is right for your particular situation, talk to a competent bankruptcy lawyer to personally review your individual case.