If you’re looking for impressive (and depressing) numbers on the current economic downturn, try this one: In the past two years, local bankruptcy filings have increased by 695 percent, according to The Daily Progress. The DP reports that 175 families have filed for bankruptcy between October 1 and December 19 of this year, compared to 22 in the same time period in 2006.
The current state of the economy hasn’t spared businesses either. Circuit City filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, after announcing it would close 155 stores nationwide and halt future store openings.
According to the Progress, the Charlottesville area’s unemployment rate is the 17th lowest in the nation, at 3.4 percent. Yet the Virginia Employment Commission reports that 1,000 net local non-farm jobs have been lost in the past year.