perspectives

Archive for the ‘Bankruptcy’ Category

How does the Wall Street meltdown affect my pension?

Posted Thursday, September 18th, 2008 by Joellen Leavelle

In the past few days, large companies on Wall Street have been closing left and right, making the people who work at these companies jittery about many issues, including their retirement security.

The good news for these employees is that the money in their pension and 401(k) plans is protected from creditors, so that even when a company goes into bankruptcy, they don’t have to worry about their retirement money being used to pay back debts instead. (more…)

Bankruptcies Rising Among Older Americans

Posted Friday, August 29th, 2008 by Barry Barth

An Associated Press story appearing in the Washington Post this week carries disturbing news about the deteriorating financial health of older Americans.

According to an analysis by the Consumer Bankruptcy Project, which studied bankruptcies filed between 1991 and 2007, the bankruptcy filing rate has risen dramatically for Americans over the age of 55, with the oldest age group having the greatest increase.  (more…)