Things are getting tough all over.

Personal and business bankruptcies are up 84% in the Valley, and bankruptcy attorneys are busier than ever.

“I feel like a doctor at a train wreck,” said Peter Bunting, a bankruptcy attorney in Fresno who files close to 30 personal bankruptcy cases a month, up from about a dozen several years ago.

The volume of work is so great that firms like Buntings and Caswell Bell & Hillison of Fresno have added extra staff to handle the increased caseload.

Bedoyan feels fortunate when he can help clients restart their lives and in some cases jump back into business. But he’s not optimistic about the near future.

“My feeling is that this current housing crisis is not going to turn around this year or next,” Bedoyan said. “And if you talk to anyone in real estate there is tremendous inventory out there. And it will take a while to work through that.”

U.S. Bankruptcy court has some useful information.