Hawaii bankruptcies are continuing to dwindle in tandem with the state’s improving economy.

The number of filings in January edged down 4.1 percent from the year-earlier period amid a backdrop of low unemployment and increased nonfarm payrolls. There were 117 filings last month, down from 122 in January 2014, according to data released Monday by U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Hawaii.

Honolulu bankruptcy attorney Blake Goodman credits the state’s 4 percent unemployment rate, which is the lowest in more than six years, as one of the main catalysts for the decreasing number of bankruptcies.

"The low unemployment means that people’s incomes are very stable and they’re able to fund their debt service as well as the other parts of their life," Goodman said. "They may be on the edge, but it’s just enough to ensure themselves that they’ll make it through another month. That and the fact that I think during the financial crisis of 2009, lenders became more wary of who they were going to extend debt to, and because of that, there is less debt in the system, from houses to cars to credit cards. There seems to have been less an extension of credit that is now five years later becoming obvious."

Hawaii bankruptcy filings fell last year for the fourth year in a row and reached their lowest level since the recession. They were down 17.8 percent to 1,702 from 2,071 in 2013. Filings surged to 3,954 in 2010 — the year after the recession ended — before beginning a gradual descent. Filings fell to 3,325 in 2011, 2,528 in 2012 and then fell further in 2013 and 2014. Low interest rates, which have made it easier to borrow money and purchase or refinance homes, also have been a large contributor to the decline in bankruptcies.

Last month Chapter 7 liquidation — the most common type of bankruptcy — rose 1.2 percent to 83 from 82. But Chapter 13 filings, which allow individuals with regular sources of income to set up plans to pay creditors over time, dropped 17.9 percent to 32 from 39.

The other major type of filing, Chapter 11, saw two filings last month compared with one in January 2014. Chapter 11 filings allow a business to reorganize.

Goodman cautioned, though, that the downward trend may be reaching an end. He noted that the number of new claims in his office in January rose 68 percent to 32 from 19.

"January is the biggest month we’ve had in probably 24 months in terms of people retaining us to file bankruptcies," he said. There’s a general uptick in the activity of people that was unusual for January given the stable economy. But whether it’s a trend or not will be determined in the next couple of months."

Across the state, January bankruptcies fell in two counties and rose in two others. In Hono­lulu County bankruptcies plunged 33.7 percent to 59 from 89 and in Hawaii County declined 6.3 percent to 15 from 16. However, in Maui County bankruptcies more than doubled to 33 from 13 and also more than doubled in Kauai County to 10 from four.