Government News

The House passed a bill to suspend the debt ceiling on Wednesday, clearing a major legislative hurdle with just days left before the US is expected to default. The final House vote was 314 to 117, with 149 Republicans and 165 Democrats…

Americans’ debt levels continue to climb to new heights at a time when economic conditions are becoming increasingly less stable. Household debt balances set a fresh record high of $17.05 trillion during the first quarter, growing $148 billion or 0.9% from…

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued guidance on debt collectors, covered by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, threatening to foreclose on homes with mortgages past the statute of limitations. The advisory opinion clarifies that a…

U.S. House Republicans on Wednesday struggled but whipped just enough votes to pass their plan to temporarily raise the nation’s borrowing limit and also cut spending by slashing key parts of President Joe Biden’s climate and tax law, potentially risking…

Mortgage rates continued to decline for the fourth consecutive week, with the average 30-year fixed rate falling to 6.83%. Rates on long-term fixed-rate mortgages, including FHA loans, VA loans and jumbo loans, all dropped during the past week. Meanwhile, short-term mortgage…

On March 3, the CFPB received a rulemaking petition from the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) in response to forthcoming FCRA rulemaking announced in the Bureau’s Fall 2022 regulatory agenda. As previously covered by InfoBytes, the Bureau announced it is considering pre-rulemaking activity…

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) took action today against Portfolio Recovery Associates, one of the largest debt collectors in the nation, for violating a 2015 CFPB order and engaging in other violations of law. The CFPB filed…

Starting this year, the three leading credit agencies began wiping medical debt under $500 from americans’ credit reports. To benefit from this change, you don’t have to do anything. But experts say it’s still smart to check on it. “If…

A new CFPB report estimates that medical collections tradelines declined by 37 percent between 2018 and 2022. “Market Snapshot: An Update on Third-Party Debt Collections Tradelines Reporting” also found that medical debt constitutes a majority (57 percent) of all collections on credit…

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, in a letter to Congress on Thursday, said the U.S. has reached its debt limit, and has begun resorting to “extraordinary measures” so the government can continue paying its bills. Yellen had already previously warned the…