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By

Angelica Leicht

Senior Editor, Managing Your Money

Angelica Leicht is the senior editor for the Managing Your Money section for CBSNews.com, where she writes and edits articles on a range of personal finance topics. Angelica previously held editing roles at The Simple Dollar, Interest, HousingWire and other financial publications.

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May 7, 2026 / 12:07 PM EDT / CBS News

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Timing can affect the settlement process, so you should know whether it's better to make an offer before or after a lawsuit is filed. William_Potter/Getty Images

Rising credit card balances and stubbornly high interest rates are putting more borrowers in difficult positions right now. And, the economic landscape certainly isn't helping either, considering that prices are rapidly rising as debt totals grow and more borrowers face job losses and other hurdles.…