A steady climbing demographic in bankruptcy is that of more women filing bankruptcy than ever before. Women who file bankruptcy are single mothers, women who get divorced and those who become widows. Recent surveys indicate that close to 40% of bankruptcy filings in the U.S. today are made up by women.

Divorce is a growing reason for the increased bankruptcy filings as a whole, but because women typically win custody of their children in divorce proceedings, they normally don’t have the necessary income to support them properly and although they’re entitled to child support payments, this is not sufficient income to support kids, pay rent or mortgage and live a normal and comfortable life, so a lot of credit card debt is incurred in the process eventually leading to bankruptcy.

Women and bankruptcy has become more common today and if you’re a mother looking at a possible divorce, you need to make preparations for yourself. Take a close look at your over all debts, and make sure you have your own representation in court.

In order to avoid bankruptcy women should consult a financial advisor who will recommend strict steps you’ll need to implement to start setting money aside if you’re employed. If you’re not employed then it will behoove you to spend some effort to get a job before your divorce proceedings begin.

If you’re in danger of becoming a widow, you must have a clear understanding of the finances in your family if you’re currently not the person in charge of this. Your husband may know a lot about running the budget in your family but if you’re not currently involved in this, you’ll need to learn everything you can before the unthinkable does happen.

Bankrupt women are not a rare thing anymore, more and more women are joining the ranks of Americans who have had to take this route. So if you are concerned about your financial future should you end up alone for whatever reason, you need to consider the option of filing bankruptcy at some point in your life if you’re not employed and have a significant amount of debt.

The cost of filing bankruptcy has kept up with the economy and the demand for filing services, though it is not bankruptcy legal services alone that total up the cost of bankruptcy. There are a few other factors when considering bankruptcy, that the filer needs to think about before proceeding. To summarize the basic list of costs, they are legal fees, filing fees and counseling fees. Other fees like amendment fees would apply if you had to make changes to your petition after submitting it, or conversion fees if you decide to file chapter 7 bankruptcy after having submitted your petition for chapter 13.

Bankruptcy Legal Fees

Legal fees may be the bulk of bankruptcy costs, these fees can range anywhere from $400 to $1700 depending on where you are in the country. The cost of filing personal bankruptcy has in fact gone up in the last couple of years, mostly due to the changes in bankruptcy laws, that made it more difficult for individuals to qualify for a bankruptcy discharge while also requiring more paperwork to be filed by bankruptcy attorneys. Many attorneys and law firms understand that their clients are dealing with a lot of debt and may not be able to handle the legal fees all at once. So they have made it easier for filers to take advantage of payment plans.

Bankruptcy Filing Fees

When filing for bankruptcy it would be wise to hire an experienced bankruptcy attorney, as they would be best to calculate your total bankruptcy costs as they apply to the court’s fees. As of January 2007 the bankruptcy court filing fees are $299 for chapter 7 bankruptcy and $274 for chapter 13. There are other costs such as:

1. Registration of Judgment – $39
2. Notice of removal – $250

Conversion Fees

1. Chapter 11 to Chapter 7 – $15
2. Chapter 12 to Chapter 7 – $60
3. Chapter 13 to Chapter 7 – $25
4. Chapter 7 to Chapter 11 – $755
5. Chapter 12 to Chapter 11 – $800
6. Chapter 12 to Chapter 13 – $35
7. Chapter 13 to Chapter 11 – $765

Amendment Fees

1. Schedules D, E and F – $26
2. Amendment to list of creditors – $26

Counseling fees
The basic costs of filing for bankruptcy end with the counseling fees. These are the fees you must pay to receive the mandatory counseling that the new bankruptcy laws require all filers to take prior to getting a discharge. The costs of bankruptcy counseling are rather moderate. Visit the U.S. trustee’s site for a list of approved credit counseling agencies, this portal lists the agencies by state and typically the costs are anywhere between $20 to $40 dollars. The first part of the counseling should be done prior to submitting your bankruptcy petition and the second part prior to getting a discharge.

So the overall bankruptcy costs can certainly add up and make the process more complicated for you if you don’t have the disposable income to pay for it all at once. Your bankruptcy attorney’s fees may be negotiable, or at the very least they may allow you to make installments on their total fees. However the bankruptcy court’s fees will not be negotiable these must be paid in full at the time of filing.

The world is going bankrupt

By the end of the first decade of the new millennium bankruptcy cases will have reached tens of millions in the US alone. More people will have filed bankruptcy than have acquired a college degree, retired, or have died of cancer. Current bankruptcy statistics show that businesses, banks and insurance companies are going bankrupt as well as individuals.

Banks and mortgage companies are going bankrupt because of the mortgage crisis that’s been sweeping the country for the last couple of years, while other companies and business are suffering the economic change due to lack of consumer confidence, where people are mostly willing to hold on to what they have rather than continue spending on non-essential items.

Other reasons that contribute to the high number of bankruptcy filings, including loss of employment for a great number of individuals, medical bills, credit card debt, becoming disabled, loss of a primary income provider and of course identity theft, which is becoming less rare. Is spite of the changes implemented in bankruptcy law in October of 2005, making it more difficult for individuals to qualify and discharge their debts through bankruptcy, the number of bankruptcy filings seem to have kept up the pace.

Bankruptcy alternatives become less feasible

Although bankruptcy alternatives have always been encouraged, the current bankruptcy trends provide proof that it has become less effective for individual filers to properly rely on bankruptcy alternatives such as debt consolidation, credit counseling or negotiating directly with their creditors.

The pressure that creditors put on debtors only adds to their inclination to end it all by going with the one option that can and that is by “filing bankruptcy”. Even after making the decision of filing bankruptcy, individuals become weary of the fact that bankruptcy is a decision that will impact their lives severely in terms of credit worthiness.

The most common alternative to bankruptcy is usually debt consolidation, however this often results in an even larger problem for the debtor as these types of programs often carry high fees for the service. Also there are a lot of companies that often pose as non-profit companies helping people to get rid of their debt through debt consolidation but in fact have a number of hidden fees and leave the debtor with even more debt.

Realistically the best option today for someone who’s heavily burdened by consumer debt and have little or no income, is bankruptcy chapter 7 in which all unsecured debts can virutally be wiped out. For consumers who have assets they want to hold on to and have predictable and stable income, the best option is bankruptcy chapter 13 where their debts can be restructured for easier more manageable payments.