More Coloradans are filing for bankruptcy since 2022, and new data show the pace of filings is increasing. Chris Wood, editor and publisher of BizWest, joined KUNC to discuss what the numbers mean — and what they don't.
First off, Wood said there's no cause for concern.
“I don't want to overstate what's happening,” he told KUNC. “We are seeing increases, but we have seen very low numbers of bankruptcies for several years. And that continues to be the case. When you deal with low numbers, you will tend to see large percentage changes, as we have in recent months."
For example, Colorado bankruptcies in April were up 51% from the same period a year ago. That reflects 785 filings in April 2024, compared to 520 in April 2023. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, Colorado saw 910 bankruptcy filings.
“As a point of reference, Colorado saw thousands of bankruptcy filings on a monthly basis during the Great Recession (2007-2009),” Wood said. “The trend is for them to be increasing, but they're nowhere near that level.”
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Most of these filings are for individuals rather than businesses. This May, only 14 of 740 bankruptcy filings statewide were on behalf of businesses.
“Business filings really haven't changed much year over year,” Wood told KUNC. “Those businesses that have filed really cover a wide range of industries from an accounting firm in Arapahoe County to a market and cafe in Denver. In June, we just reported on a chapter 11 filing for a photonics company in Broomfield and an outdoor company in Boulder.”
Many businesses relied on pandemic-era federal aid programs to stay afloat and keep paying their employees. Since expanded unemployment benefits, foreclosure and eviction freezes and other support programs are expiring and inflation is up, more individuals need help to make ends meet.
“Last year, Colorado bankruptcy filings overall increased 19 percent,” Wood said. “In Larimer and Weld counties, we saw increases of 27% in each of those counties. Boulder saw a 41% increase. But the numbers, as I said, are still very low.”
