In a past post, we mentioned how, in February, Miami-Dade County and the South Florida region as a whole saw month-to-month drops in personal bankruptcy filings. Statistics that were recently reported on by the Sun Sentinel indicate that Miami-Dade County and South Florida saw a reversal of this trend in March.
The statistics are from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Miami. According to the statistics, in March, personal bankruptcy filings increased on a month-to-month basis in Miami-Dade County and the South Florida region as a whole.
Reportedly, in March, 1,297 personal bankruptcy filings were made in Miami-Dade County. This reportedly is 210 more filings than were made in the county in February. The other two counties in the South Florida region (Palm Beach County and Broward County) also saw month-to-month rises in bankruptcy filings in March.
The total number of personal bankruptcy filings made in the South Florida region in March was 2,556. This reportedly is 351 filings greater than South Florida’s filing total from February.
These statistics regarding bankruptcy filings in March give rise to some questions. What caused the reversal of the bankruptcy filing trends that Miami-Dade County and the South Florida region as a whole saw in February? Why are bankruptcies now on the rise? What other impacts will the causes of this new trend of increases in bankruptcy filings have on consumers in Miami-Dade County and the rest of South Florida? How long will this new trend continue? It will be interesting to see how these questions are ultimately answered.
Source: The Sun Sentinel, “Personal bankruptcies up in Broward County in March,” Arlene Satchell, April 2, 2012