The recovery from the Great Recession has hit a milestone: Total household debt climbed to $ 12.73 trillion in the first quarter to top the peak reached in 2008 before the housing market crash and severe economic downturn led to a historic reduction, according to government data released Wednesday. But this time, Americans are doing much better handling their mortgages, credit cards, auto loans and other borrowing, the data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed.
