Bankruptcy "Abuse" Wasn’t There; Today’s Falling Stock Market

I am looking this afternoon at an October 15th article in the Duluth News Tribune. A bankruptcy lawyer I know has posted it on a local bankruptcy list serve to which I subscribe. The headline, “Bankruptcy filings are on the rise” is not really news to me. But one of the sub-headings in the article really caught my eye: “ABUSE WASN’T THERE”

The article rehashes how the credit and banking industry had lobbied for passage of the 2005 new legislation on the theory that a large number of people had been “abusing” the bankruptcy system. But then it takes a closer look at the filings under the new law, especially the ratio between Chapter 7s – which is where most of the abuse was supposed to have been happening – and Chapter 13s – which are preferred by the banking industry. They note that the ratio between 7s and 13s is the same now as it was in 1999. That ratio together with quotes from a credit counselor at Lutheran Social Services seems to support the proposition that the perceived “abuse” never actually existed.

In fact, judging by the whipping that some of the banks and credit card companies seem to be taking in the stock market today, it seems clear to me that a great deal of irresponsible behavior – abuse if you want to call it that – was engaged in by the bankers and lenders themselves. At the time of this writing, the Dow is down 192 points; and it’s been dropping for several days in a row. It is my hope that our economy can absorb the shock that is being expressed in today’s market, but I’m not at all sure that we won’t wind up in a recession. If it happens, I don’t think it will be the consumers who will be to blame.

Homestead Exemption Heaven

This past Monday Governor Pawlenty signed into law a revision to the Minnesota homestead exemption which does two things. First it increases the amount of equity in a homestead which is exempt from the current $200,000 to $300,000. Second, it increases the amount of land which is considered exempt from half an acre for the usual homestead located in a city to 160 acres.

When this new law goes into effect, which should be on August 1st, it should be much easier to claim a homestead as exempt in a bankruptcy or in any proceeding where a creditor is going after a homeowner in this state.

2022 update:  Minnesota statutes now exempt homestead equity up to $480,000.  This has resulted from incremental adjustments for inflation since the big jump in amount described here.

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