U.S. Personal Bankruptcy Statistics
Delivered February 10, 2020. Contributor: Terri A.
Goals
To find 4-5 statistical insights into personal bankruptcy, with a focus on individuals who have high assets but low cash flow, in order to help determine a market size for individuals who may wish to invest in a company that would loan money to people seeking asset protection plans.
Early Findings
- In 2010, roughly 9.18% of people filing bankruptcy fit into the $60,000+ income category, as compared to only 5.5% of individuals in 2006.
- However, individuals making less than $30,000 per year are still the most likely to file for bankruptcy. These individuals are more likely to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
- In contrast, individuals with assets to protect are more likely to file for Chapter 13, rather than Chapter 7, bankruptcy.
- Among individuals with high wealth in assets, such as real estate investors, factors leading to personal bankruptcy can include investing in companies with too much risk/too many unknowns (speculating) , a lack of education about real estate investing, a lack of proper analysis of their properties, and failing to treat real estate investing as a full-time job.
Research proposal:
Only the project owner can select the next research path.