Under pressure from Congress and consumer groups, firms say they'll give more details on the progress of reworked home loans. Facing pressure from Congress and consumer advocates, lenders are pledging to provide stronger evidence of their progress in reworking costly home loans to prevent borrowers from being foreclosed.

Those with loans serviced by Countrywide should avoid some chaos, but future borrowers may find their options more limited. Consumer advocates and mortgage experts didn't know whether to cheer or jeer the announcement that Bank of America had agreed to purchase troubled Countrywide Financial Corp.

LOS ANGELES - Consumer advocates, minority groups and homeowners, some chanting "Save our homes, fix our loans," staged a demonstration outside Countrywide Financial offices Wednesday, part of a campaign to press the nation's largest mortgage lender to do more to help borrowers in danger of

Those at the San Diego event urge more help for mortgage borrowers at risk of foreclosure. Consumer advocates, minority groups and homeowners -- some chanting "Save our homes, fix our loans!" -- staged a demonstration outside Countrywide Financial Corp. offices Wednesday, part of a campaign to press the nation's largest mortgage lender to do more to help borrowers in danger of foreclosure.

Testing all new hospital patients for a dangerous staph "superbug" could help wipe out a germ that likely kills more Americans than AIDS, consumer advocates say and early evidence suggests.

Its share price falls after it says it will rewrite or modify $16 billion in loans. CEO Mozilo may face more pressure. Countrywide Financial Corp. unveiled a plan Tuesday to refinance or modify $16 billion in loans to help struggling borrowers, drawing cautious praise from some consumer advocates. But the lender's stock sank to a four-year low.

A public outcry against the mortgage industry is growing louder. Lawmakers, regulators and consumer advocates say they are increasingly worried about the fallout from a record number of homes going into foreclosure. They're pushing the industry to move faster to aid homeowners, by forgiving past-due amounts, lowering rates and shifting people into fixed-rate loans.

It would require better fee disclosure. Critics warn of higher costs and investor confusion. Consumer advocates say better disclosure of fees for 401(k) plans would lead to bigger retirement nest eggs for millions of Americans. But business groups Thursday made clear they would fight legislation that would mandate a comprehensive listing of all such expenses.

Homeowners and consumer advocates urged a state Senate committee to help save foreclosure victims' homes and improve lending standards on Tuesday, the same day a study showed that foreclosure filings in California almost quadrupled in July compared with a...

Homeowners and consumer advocates urged a state Senate committee to help save foreclosure victims' homes and improve lending standards on Tuesday, the same day a study showed that foreclosure filings in California almost quadrupled in July compared with a...