Average Income for Bankruptcy Eligibility Test Drops
By Chip Parker, Jacksonville Bankruptcy Attorney on Oct 20, 2009 in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, General Bankruptcy Information
According to the United States Department of Justice, U.S. Trustee program, Americans make less money today than eight months ago.
In order for bankruptcy practitioners to determine whether a person or couple qualifies for Chapter 7, we look to the latest median income figures periodically published by the U.S. Trustee. Normally, and as anyone would expect, these figures, on average, go up every time they are published. However, this time, the numbers tell a sadly different story that the U.S. economy continues to contract.
I was startled to learn that my state, Florida, had experienced a nearly 3% decline in income since the last time the median income figures were published. So, I did an analysis of the entire country, and while Florida was harder hit than most, the average for the entire country had declined!
According to my statistical comparison of the median income figures for a single person, the national average has declined for the period of March 15, 2009 to November 1, 2009 by nearly a quarter of a percent:
I ranked the states in order from biggest gain in income to biggest loss in income. Not surprisingly, those states experiencing tremendous foreclosure rates are near the bottom of the list.
Florida and Nevada, both of which have been decimated by foreclosures, rank 42nd and 46th respectively. New Hampshire and Oregon report the worst decline, while Nebraska, Alaska and New Jersey round out the greatest increases in median income.
Sorry, comments for this entry are closed at this time.