The stock market swoon over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac this week has left many consumers scratching their heads, wondering if buying a home is a worse idea than it was seven days ago or whether to take down the “for sale” sign in the yard.

"People of all walks of life have been either guilty of overspending or the victim of some misfortune," says Greg McBride of  Bankrate.com

The company is quietly reconsidering its pledge not to raise interest rates on cards at any time, for any reason ... like being late on an unrelated bill, the New York Times reports.

When people are dealing with mountains of debt, they're much more likely to report health problems, too, according to an Associated Press-AOL Health poll. And not just little stuff; this means ulcers, severe depression, even heart attacks.

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The economic slowdown has swelled the ranks of people without health insurance. But now it is also threatening millions of people who have insurance but find that the coverage is too limited or that they cannot afford their own share of medical costs.

This is a story about the other homeowners. Not the ones who are having trouble making their mortgage payments and getting all the attention lately. No, this is about the homeowners who do not owe any money on their primary residences because they have paid off their loans.

Debt collection is a growing business for outsourcing companies, especially as the American economy slows and its consumers struggle to pay for their purchases.

Big Wall Street investment companies are taking advantage of the Federal Reserve's unprecedented offer to secure emergency loans, the central bank reported Thursday.

CIT Group said it is drawing on a $7.3 billion bank line to help conduct daily operations, a move that highlights the commercial finance company's difficulty in raising cash to pay off debt.

Treasury debt prices were little changed Thursday absent a strong directional clue from U.S. stock futures, but supported by a persistent safe haven bid on concerns about the banking system and weaker than expected jobless claims data.

Anticipating extra scrutiny from Washington in upcoming years, the debt collection industry has begun to put a friendlier face on its activities.

U.S. private equity group Carlyle will look at ways to help investors who have lost money in Dutch-listed Carlyle Capital Corporation (CCC) , Carlyle co-founder David Rubenstein told media in comments confirmed to Reuters by a spokeswoman.

Shares of Fremont General plunged to an all-time low on Tuesday after the real estate lender said it didn't believe it would be compliant with a loan covenant because of write-downs in its fourth quarter.

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