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The number of Hawaii residents and businesses filing for bankruptcy during the first three months of 2013 fell to the lowest level in nearly five years, according to data released by U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
The 200 cases filed in March capped a quarter in which the number of bankruptcy filings fell 25 percent from the same period a year earlier, the court reported Monday. There were 527 bankruptcy filings for the January-through-March period, the fewest since 475 cases were filed in the second quarter of 2008.
Bankruptcy filings soared during the 2008-2009 recession, topping out at an average of 330 cases a month in 2010. Filings have been trending lower since then.
Bankruptcies fell in all counties. In Honolulu County the number of cases fell to 121 in March, a 26 percent drop from 163 in the same month last year. In Hawaii County filings fell 38 percent to 28 cases, and in Maui County they fell 8 percent to 43 cases. Filings fell 33 percent in Kauai County to eight cases.
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Bankruptcy filings in March fell from a year ago:
| |
2013 |
2012 |
CHANGE |
| Chapter 7 |
150 |
206 |
-27.2% |
| Chapter 11 |
4 |
2 |
100% |
| Chapter 12 |
0 |
1 |
— |
| Chapter 13 |
46 |
58 |
-20.7% |
| Total |
200 |
267 |
-25.1% |
>> Chapter 7: Liquidation
>> Chapter 11: Business reorganization
>> Chapter 12: Reorganization of family farms
>> Chapter 13: Individuals with regular sources of income set up plans to pay creditors over time.
Source: U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Hawaii
|
By category the biggest drop was in Chapter 7 liquidation filings, which fell to 150 cases in March, a 27 percent decline from the same month a year earlier. Chapter 13 cases, which allow debtors to keep their assets if they set up a plan to pay creditors over time, fell by 21 percent to 46 cases in March.
There were four Chapter 11 business reorganization cases, three of which were filed by companies involved in the $1 billion Hokulia luxury real estate project on Hawaii island. Filing for bankruptcy were Hokulia developer 1250 Oceanside Partners and two of its affiliates.
The restructuring will allow the project to proceed and will permit creditors to receive payment in excess of the liquidation value of their claims, company officials said in court papers.
Oceanside was placed into Chapter 11 reorganization by a California investment firm that recently acquired the bulk of Oceanside’s debts, which total at least $685 million. The case stands among one of the largest bankruptcy cases in Hawaii history, based on total debt.
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