When you reach your golden years, you probably expect that you will be financially stable and able to enjoy a nice retirement. Unfortunately, for many people, that is a reality they will never see. Instead, they find themselves in a bad financial place that requires them to consider filing bankruptcy.
You probably wish to avoid this fate yourself, so it helps to understand why seniors may file bankruptcy. According to Forbes, the rate of bankruptcy filings for people over the age of 55 keeps rising, especially for those who are older than 65. There are some easy to pinpoint reasons behind this trend.
Lack of resources
One issue for seniors is that they often retire and end up with expenses they did not plan for. These expenses can wreck their financial plan and leave them with no resources to pay for debt. Seniors typically will either have to go back to work or dig into savings meant to last them for the rest of their lives. When this money runs out or they can no longer physically work anymore, it leads to financial trouble.
Medical debt
There is no denying that medical care is one of the biggest expenses you will have as you get older. Your body requires a lot more care as you age, which means you will see a doctor more often, possibly have to undergo surgical procedures and even stay in the hospital. As you age even more, you may need long-term care. The costs for all these medical needs add up fast, and more often than not, they are more than you can afford even with insurance.
When medical debt gets too high, the only option for many seniors is to file bankruptcy, which will give them relief from the bills. Often, such debt is too high to conceivably pay down or ever pay off for someone who is age 55 or older.
