If life were a 1950s sitcom, college graduates would zoom out of school, get a job, buy a house, buy a car and get married. But these days, student loans are just one of many reason debtors under 30 are staying far away from the housing and auto markets. That, and life isn’t a sitcom. A new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows that this age group could be a drag on the economy by the very fact that they aren’t participating in it. [More]
Report: Student Debtors Under 30 Are Shying Away From Buying Homes, Cars
By April 18, 2013
Almost $1 Billion In Defaulted Perkins Loans Prompting Schools To Sue Former Students
By February 8, 2013
In yet another sign that student loan debt in the U.S. is in a bad way— you know, beyond the fact that we as a nation owe about $900 billion in outstanding debt — low-income students who received Perkins loans to get through college are defaulting at such a rate that their former colleges and universities are suing them to recoup the money. [More]
A Third Of $900 Billion In Outstanding Student Loan Debt Held By Subprime Borrowers
By January 31, 2013
As if we needed any more bad news about the already burdensome state of student loan debt in America, a new report says about a third of the almost $900 billion in outstanding student loan debt is held by the riskiest borrowers, the subprime. And another third of those borrowers who are in repayment are 90 days or more past due — quite an uptick from 24% in 2007. This combination of rising numbers of risky borrowers and loans going bad goes to show how the economic crunch is hitting recent graduates. [More]
Report Shows That College Debt Is On The Rise Again For Recent Graduates
By October 18, 2012
Today in discouraging news: the amount of college debt held by recent graduates is on the rise again. Two-thirds of the class of 2011 nationwide held debt on graduating, and on average those students had about $26,600 to take away with them along with their diplomas. However, those numbers don’t even include most graduates of for-profit colleges, who usually borrow a lot more than other students. [More]
More Than 1-In-5 Students At For-Profit Colleges Default On Student Loans Within Three Years
By September 28, 2012
For the first time, the Dept. of Education has provided stats for people three years into their student loan repayments, and the numbers don’t paint a pretty picture. The percentage of college students defaulting on their loans is on the rise, with 9.1% of recent students defaulting within two years of their first payment coming due, and a whopping 13.5% defaulting within three years. And at controversial for-profit colleges, that number is alarmingly higher. [More]
New Record Reached With One-In-Five American Households In Student Debt
By September 27, 2012
At this rate it feels like we’re going to be haunted by the specter of student loan debt for the rest of our nation’s history: A new record one-in-five households in America, about 19%, owed student debt in 2010. That’s more than twice what it was 20 years ago and is a big uptick from the 15% that owed in 2007 before the Great Recession hit and made all our money woes worse. [More]
Niagara Falls’ Plan To Lure Young People With Student Loan Payoffs Is Working Splendidly
By July 3, 2012
Remember how towns in need of a shot of youthful energy were dangling a tasty carrot of student loan payoffs in front of said young people to try and convince them to move there? It seems Niagara Falls’ plan in that vein is doing quite well for itself, with a new report that young people from around the country are “vying for the chance to live in downtown Niagara Falls.” [More]
Cities Dangle Carrot To Students: Move Here & We’ll Pay Off Your Debt
By June 13, 2012
What’s a great way to get a young, thriving community to pop up in your town and revitalize an area? A little gentle monetary incentive, in the form of offers to pay off student loan debt for young residents moving into the town. Niagara Falls, N.Y. is just one such town trying to entice fresh-faced professionals to move in by paying off part of their debts. [More]
What Is This Debt You Speak Of? Study Says Many Students Are Clueless About Student Loans
By May 17, 2012
Student loan debt is the cause of plenty of headaches in this country, from aspiring nuns to the families of those straddled with a deceased loved one’s payments. So it’s a bit unsettling that a new study says many students are underestimating how much they owe — and some don’t even know they have debt in the first place. Shudder. [More]
Is The So-Called Student Loan Crisis One Big Exaggeration?
By March 30, 2012
Hear that sound? It’s the collective freakout of students across the nation as it comes time for them to finally pay up on those student loans. But while student loan debt is a big issue, at over $1 trillion total, experts are telling everyone to take a deep breath and calm down, because it’s really not that bad. [More]
Americans Owe More On Student Loans Than Any Other Kind Of Debt
By March 6, 2012
That money fleeing from your bank account every month is going more toward student loan debt more than any other kind of debt, says a new report. So now when you ask yourself, “Where does it all go?” you’ve got an answer. [More]
I've Got $555,000 In Student Loans
By November 24, 2010
Think $200,000 in student loans is bad? Try $555,000. [WSJ] [More]
