Bank of America, as part of a settlement it and other large banks made with state and federal regulators earlier this year, is offering about 200,000 homeowners an average of $150,000 each in mortgage debt relief through principal forgiveness on their home loans.

A housewife from Wheeling, W. Va. who fought back against an allegedly abusive debt collector that harassed her and threatened her sexually over a debt she says she didn’t owe has won a $10 million judgment against the company, the largest ever against a debt collection firm.

If you don’t always make good decisions with your credit cards, you could end up with so much credit card debt that you might have to consider getting help from a professional debt relief company. But before things get that bad, here are five ways you can check to see if your credit cards pass the stress test. If you fail one of these tests, you should probably rethink how you use your credit cards, before you end up in over your head with debt.

Accretive Health LLC, one of the nation’s largest medical debt collection firms, has struck out at Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson, calling her lawsuit against the company for alleged privacy and debt collection violations “unfounded speculation” and asking a judge to dismiss the complaint.

Here’s how you can use the debt snowball method of paying off your debts from low balances to high balances, regardless of interest rate, to give yourself some much needed personal debt relief and stay motivated over the long haul until you’re able to get completely out of debt.

One of the nation’s largest medical debt collection firms is under fire for its highly controversial and allegedly illegal tactics, which include working with hospitals to staff emergency rooms with agents who use “stop lists” to demand payment from debtors who seek treatment, even for life-threatening conditions.

The Attorney General of Ohio filed a lawsuit Thursday against a California-based mortgage debt relief operation that allegedly scammed Ohioans out of thousands of dollars in advance fees in exchange for false promises to lower consumers’ mortgage payments and prevent foreclosures and then changed business names sop it could continue to operate while preventing consumers from catching on.

America’s college students may need some major credit card debt relief in the near future, according to a recent study of financial literacy on campus that found the majority of students were dangerously ignorant about credit cards and credit card debt.

On the heels of reports that the head of the top regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has softened his stance on providing mortgage debt relief for underwater homeowners, two U.S. Senate Republicans are urging the government to instead use the mortgage debt relief funds to pay down the national debt.

Edward DeMarco, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, in a softening of his position on debt relief to underwater homeowners, said that principal reductions may make sense after all, but that more study was needed. The comments indicate that a measure of mortgage debt relief may be on the way for struggling U.S. homeowners with mortgages held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.