The number of Hawai'i bankruptcies filed in November fell to their lowest level in 10 months, but the letup in filings may have more to do with a seasonal slowdown than an improvement in personal finances.

Figures from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Honolulu show there were 219 bankruptcy filings in November, the lowest this year sincethe 208 filed in January. Bankruptcy attorney Donald Spafford Jr. said he attributed the lower number of filings to people taking a break from financial worries during the Thanksgiving holiday.

"I think it will pick up, actually," said Spafford.

On Monday, Spafford filed bankruptcy petitions for clients in the early afternoon and again in the evening. During the short period between his trips to bankruptcy court, he said, other attorneys filed petitions for 13 other people.

Bankruptcy filings have surged during the past year and a half as the economy, credit market turmoil and a downturn in real estate devastated some resident's finances. More people are expected to file for bankruptcy this year than any year since 2005, when laws were tightened to make it more difficult to discharge debts through bankruptcy.

But where there had been monthly gains in filings as high as 72 percent in 2009 compared to 2008, November's total came in with a 1.9 percent increase over the same month a year earlier. Moreover, the tally was down by 55 filings compared to October.

But Spafford said he believes the totals will remain high in coming months because of some people's continued real estate problems and others who face unemployment or lower work hours, such as state workers who were either laid off or furloughed.

"I think the people who were just getting by working for the state will have problems," Spafford said.

Spafford added that he continues to see business owners who have been forced to close down, along with people who owe more on their mortgages than the current value of their homes.

"It's because of all of the foreclosures that I get a lot of people wanting to save their house through Chapter 13s," he said.

There are several types of bankruptcy filings, with a straight liquidation of assets to pay creditors known as a Chapter 7.

Under a Chapter 13 proceeding, a debtor may be able to stop foreclosure proceedings while working up an installment plan to repay certain creditors over, usually, a three- to five-year period.

In November, the number of Chapter 7 cases fell by 2.7 percent from a year earlier, while Chapter 13 cases rose 26 percent.

The bankruptcy court figures also show November filings fell in all four counties compared to October. This includes:

• O'ahu's count of 129 was the lowest since November 2008, when there were 120.

• Big Island residents filed 34 cases, which was lower than October's 42, but two more than a year earlier.

• Maui County cases fell to 47. This compared to 50 in November 2008.

• Kaua'i's case total was nine, the lowest in more than a year.