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By Jessica Silver-Greenberg November 12, 2014 9:45 pmIn the netherworld of consumer debt, there are zombies: bills that cannot be killed even by declaring personal bankruptcy. Tens of thousands of Americans who went through bankruptcy are still haunted by debts long after — sometimes as long as a decade after — federal judges have extinguished…

October 17, 2014 by Chris Birk Bouncing back from bankruptcy or foreclosure takes time. But that doesn’t mean you have to shelve your homebuying aspirations for some interminable stretch. They’re called “boomerang buyers” for a reason. Consumers may be able to close on a home loan just a couple years removed from one (or both)…

Here’s the truth about your credit score: There are more things that can hurt it than help it, and there’s some confusion about how that works. A recent survey from TransUnion asked consumers about a few common bills and whether or not they’re regularly reported to the major credit reporting agencies. Generally, things like rent…

By Melvin Backman   @CNNMoney The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau put student loan servicers on notice this week with a report detailing industry practices it found suspect. These companies help collect on the $1.2 trillion in student debt, but the report didn’t name names of shoddiest actors. The agency found that some companies would charge…