> if my parents die and own real estate and also unpaid
> debt I have two choices: either inherit the real estate
> plus debt (i.e. pay it off) or walk away from the whole
> package.
That's not 'debt forgiveness' -- that's simple foreclosure. Clearly if the equity - debt is less than zero, you'd be hard pressed to justify why you should take it over; but the debt won't be *forgiven*, i.e., you won't get the house anyway. The bank, as owner of the secured debt, becomes the logical conclusion to the transaction. Since the negative aspects of home foreclosure aren't all that negative to someone who is dead -- impact on crdit score, inability to secure new credit, loss of shelter -- it's in some sense the 'perfect' time to get foreclosed upon.
On the other hand, if unsecured loans (i.e., credit cards) exceed the value of the estate, they will be written down. You can call that 'forgiveness' if you want, but it's really just part of the business plan. Some people, for a variety of reasons, will not pay back a debt, so fees + interest have to take that into account.
There's nothing "forgiving" going on at Chase and Citibank in that case.
/jordan