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FC: Student loan debt surpasses $1.5 TRILLION

This x10000000.

I'm not advocating for loan forgiveness or anything of the sort. No matter the reason, the simple fact is that Millennials are putting off major life decisions such as marriage, buying new cars, buying a house, etc. because of debt levels. This will affect every segment of the marketplace in the coming years.
Funny how people bitch about drug pricing being driven by third party subsidies yet don’t see that it’s the same thing in education
 
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I may even go so far as to advocate loan forgiveness. Which does more harm, he govt forgiving 1.5 trillion in loans, or our economy going into a deep recession/depression?

I spend $1000/mo on student loans. There are millions more like me. What if we were all pumping that money back into the economy instead of writing a check to Uncle Sam. Wouldn't the jobs created and taxes generated on all that spending go a long way towards covering the 1.5 trillion forgiven over the 20 years those loans would've been repaid? Not to mention saving us from the jobs lost and taxes not generated when our lack of spending affects those who don't have any loans as well. I'm obviously not an economist, but it sure seems like loan forgiveness is better for the deficit long-term than sticking with it.
I’d entertain this If accompanied bY abolition of federal ed subsidies going forward.
 
Yeah that's why the solution is to just stop paying. Or pay it off by borrowing elsewhere. Either one. The latter being better.

But what it seems is that her deferring payments is simply paying late fees. She should stop doing that to begin with. Manage her money so she can make payments through the summer etc.

I'm not a loan specialist, but there's something wrong with her loan.

LdN


I appreciate your input. I think she considered just saying screw it and stop paying because she will never pay it off but being a gov loan, they can just start taking it out of her check. I think the reason she still does the deferral is for the same reason above. She has come to the conclusion it will never be paid off so she really doesnt care what fees it racks up now. I could be wrong but she may have finally just said screw it and only pays a couple hundred a month to keep them from going after her check while stashing the rest to try and make a one time payoff if she can ever get it to happen.
 
The majority of jobs are there for the majority of people. I agree this is probably the case. But again, I was a waiter because I knew it was harder work for more pay.

LdN

Penn State has 40,000+ students. I get what you're saying. It's entirely unreasonable for you to think everyone can make $15/hour in college and/or take a restaurant job.
 
What do you propose for the people the same age that didn't take out school loans that they couldn't afford? Do you send them a nice bonus check for being responsible? Or, is it tough luck, you should have screwed up your future finances too, so you could be forgiven? Loan forgiveness is a big wealth transfer through the government and not necessarily a transfer to those that deserve it.

I understand your point, but the alternative is we allow this loan debt to wreck our economy in the next 20-30 years. That will punish the folks who had no student debt just as much as anyone else.
 
I appreciate your input. I think she considered just saying screw it and stop paying because she will never pay it off but being a gov loan, they can just start taking it out of her check. I think the reason she still does the deferral is for the same reason above. She has come to the conclusion it will never be paid off so she really doesnt care what fees it racks up now. I could be wrong but she may have finally just said screw it and only pays a couple hundred a month to keep them from going after her check while stashing the rest to try and make a one time payoff if she can ever get it to happen.

I've never heard of a government loan being 28%. She's giving some bad info. Fed loans were 7% when I was taking mine out, and that was just because congress went three years without passing the bill to keep it at 4%. Other than my 3 years, they're 4%. So she has to have a private loan, and she needs to contact Sofi or someone about refinancing it.
 
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Penn State has 40,000+ students. I get what you're saying. It's entirely unreasonable for you to think everyone can make $15/hour in college and/or take a restaurant job.

I never said I thought that. I don't think working and paying four years at PSU is attainable today. That's one reason why I have a scholarship I funded. Also why I feel 2 and 2 is the best plan.

This is also why a few years ago when I received the letter from my scholarship winner, and she told me she was attending a 5th year even though she graduated, I nearly fell out of my chair with disgust.

LdN
 
Did you read this thread? I went to a branch for 2 years, worked during school, and worked for 2 years after school to pay off the remainder of my undergrad debts before starting grad school.

I also stated I was aware of the debt I would incur in grad school and consciously made the choice and don't regret it. I would do it again. I'm also repaying my loans and can afford to do so. For the 100th time this thread, I'm not asking for a personal handout, I'm simply stating that the current condition, which the government caused, is going to wreck our economy. And forgiving the loans or large portions of them may be the only way to avoid that.

Everybody should be able to repay their college loans as long as they entered into the transaction knowing that they would wind up with a career/salary that would be more than adequate to cover the loan payments.

About 12 years ago I hired an entry level marketing communications major that we paid about $35,000. After approximately 6 months on the job I heard her moaning about her finances including student debt. She went on to explain that she owed nearly $100,000 on those loans. I asked her why she went to an expensive private college if she couldn't afford it. She told me because that's where her friends went and that I sounded like her dad.

I certainly agree that college costs are too high and that the government has only made matter worse. But there is no "government" to forgive your debt any more than there is a "government" that can give you free health care. Nothing is free. What you're asking is for other people to pay for it.
 
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Knew there would be a lot of "boot straps" advice in this thread.
Go look at how the rest of the first world manages to make college either free or very affordable for young people.

Here it's expensive as hell and people still manage to blame the students. This country is a ship of fools.

Judge,
Don't other countries limit who can attend AND direct them toward their major? We had friends in Ireland a few years back and the final test scores their kids took determined in large part both college and major.
 
This country is doomed to fail. You can't constantly sell out young people to satisfy the old. The govt. has created a giant wealth transfer in education while also allowing corporations to cheaply outsource jobs to India, LatAm and Poland while they import cheap Indian H1Bs to fill jobs that Americans apparently don't have skill for. Overspend on a house, foreclose and you are free in 7 years. Open a LLC business, run it up debt then bk and it gets wiped out...free to repeat. Take out $100k in loans at 17 or 18 and tied to it for life. How does country live with itself? Universities enjoy non profit status yet sit on billions in endowments that they hoard like meisers. If 10 years after college and your 1040 averages less than your debt then discharge it. Another natural control, if you don't pay your debt then you don't have a verified diploma. Most good jobs do an education check. Mine did and I had to get transcripts. Of course, the politicians who are in bed with Sallie Mae and big education are the real predators here. They want nothing to change.. until it collapses.
 
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You must not spend much time outside the US because if you think Europe has some sort of "fix" for this problem you are wrong.

In France for example, at age 14 about 30% of my friends were told, with no recourse, their future involved fixing cars and AC units. Teachers just gave up on students... letting them walk out of class to go drink beer. It was the opposite of what you imply.

In the UK, where I'm a citizen, they have a massive issue with workers. Why do you think Brexit happened? They have been importing eastern europeans taking the jobs from the "weakest link". Oh but they get a free apartment. Great.

I could go on and on, but yes America is bad. White people especially.

LdN

Was thinking more Denmark and Sweden, but you're on a roll....

I also think Brexit happened because most of the good folks in the UK really had no idea what it was or the impact it would have (as follow up polls have suggested). It was a very close vote that would likely go the other way if another vote was held tomorrow.
 
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Yeah, what age group are the folks in congress running things the past 30 years while this happened. Hmmmmm

They're politicians, aka, failed lawyers. Not every single one, but the vast majority.
 
In 2014, Germany’s 16 states abolished tuition fees for undergraduate students at all public German universities. This means that currently both domestic and international undergraduates at public universities in Germany can study for free, with just a small fee to cover administration and other costs per semester.

Higher education in Denmark is free for students from the EU/EEA and Switzerland and for students participating in an exchange programme.

Tuition fees for universities in Spain are some of the lowest in Europe and are set by the Spanish government. Annual tuition fees in public Spanish universities are generally between €2,000-3,500.

Public Universities. Average tuition fees for a higher education in Italy are between €850-1,000 per year, depending on the university and program of study.

No, lets focus on the students in the US who are foolish enough not to want to work at a gas station the rest of their life. They are the problem. Not the ridiculous system this country has. Let's all make fun of the Millenials and their avocado toast, blame the victim par for the course.


Yes, Europe has more McDonalds employees with degrees.
 
Was thinking more Denmark and Sweden, but you're on a roll....

I also think Brexit happened because most of the good folks in the UK really had no idea what it was or the impact it would have (as follow up polls have suggested). It was a very close vote that would likely go the other way if another vote was held tomorrow.

Yeah, Denmark, Sweden. Why not include Norway. Hmm... what do these countries have in common.

Yes, you think Brexit happened because people were stupid.

I expected that.

LdN
 
Yeah, Denmark, Sweden. Why not include Norway. Hmm... what do these countries have in common.

Yes, you think Brexit happened because people were stupid.

I expected that.

LdN

Of course you did. Do you ever tire of riding that high horse?
 
I understand your point, but the alternative is we allow this loan debt to wreck our economy in the next 20-30 years. That will punish the folks who had no student debt just as much as anyone else.
I'm trying to figure out where you're getting this "economy wrecking" argument.

Total Student Loan debt is $1.5 Trillion. The U.S. GDP is around $20 Trillion per year. Let's assume that (a) 50% of the student debt is held by "high risk" individuals and (b) that they default at a rate of 33% per year. That equates to only $250 Billion dollars of default per year (1.25% of the annual GDP).

You should have taken an Economics course or two while attending this alleged University with a prestigious alumni base. :rolleyes:
 
The student loan burden will kill our economy over the next 25 years. My generation is supposed to pick up our spending as the generations before us head off into the sunset, but we can't spend like they did, because we're paying a mortgage every month on student loans alone.
It’s another ponzi scheme! The only people getting rich are the universities and their staff! The students aren’t and the government is on the hook. A another reaction and result of the recession as the Obama administration just kicked the can down the road..... The large schools are nothing more than big bureaucratic government agencies. Wouldn’t it be something if they went public and sold shares????
 
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I'm not the one here who said Brits are stupid and don't understand things.

LdN

Plenty of evidence to suggest many voters were ill informed and/or unaware of what they were voting for. But you knew that.
 
Right, not EXCLUSIVELY blaming students. How generous of you. So they should not go to college and be happy working in a Burger King or landscaping for the rest of their life.

It's not like employers are giving people a pass who don't go to college. Promising careers require it, for the most part.

Judge
You are usually so logical. If a high school student decides to go to a small private expensive [$130,000] liberal arts college and gets a degree that leads to a job paying $45,000 and ends up with a $1,200 mth loan payment who is to blame?
The student who could easily see what jobs pay
The college for jacking up tuition beyond reasonableness or
Society for not making college free.

I'll pick A and B but never C. I suspect there aren't many graduates in the STEM fields right now that won't be able to pay their bills.
I wonder how many schools have $1 billion plus in their endowment while lending students who can't afford it money?
 
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I'm trying to figure out where you're getting this "economy wrecking" argument.

Total Student Loan debt is $1.5 Trillion. The U.S. GDP is around $20 Trillion per year. Let's assume that (a) 50% of the student debt is held by "high risk" individuals and (b) that they default at a rate of 33% per year. That equates to only $250 Billion dollars of default per year (1.25% of the annual GDP).

You should have taken an Economics course or two while attending this alleged University with a prestigious alumni base. :rolleyes:

hmmm..... $250 billion in defaults, sounds familiar, can you say subprime/financial crisis?
 
It’s another ponzi scheme! The only people getting rich are the universities and their staff! The students aren’t and the government is on the hook. A another reaction and result of the recession as the Obama administration just kicked the can down the road..... The large schools are nothing more than big bureaucratic government agencies. Wouldn’t it be something if they went public and sold shares????

and take it a step further, schools with massive endowments can offer their own student loans. Maybe they'll wise up and not encourage students to run up $1000/month loans for a social science degree.
 
A lot of things changed under the Affordable Care Act when the federal government effectively monopolized student loans (From 2010 on). The gov't owns about $1trln with the remaining half a trillion in private hands.

Now, yes the interest does not fund programs. It barely funds the loans as most loans are eventually money losers (despite what people think, the government is losing money on this program and will eventually as defaults rise)

Here's some more info.

"Between 2011 and 2016, the share of privately originated student loans fell by nearly 90%."

Read more: Who Actually Owns Student Loan Debt? | Investopedia https://www.investopedia.com/articl...ally-owns-student-loan-debt.asp#ixzz5F1wZVGz1
Follow us: Investopedia on Facebook

Part of our move to socialism. Much easier to forgive if the govt. owns it all. You have heard the arguments in this thread.
 
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I'm trying to figure out where you're getting this "economy wrecking" argument.

Total Student Loan debt is $1.5 Trillion. The U.S. GDP is around $20 Trillion per year. Let's assume that (a) 50% of the student debt is held by "high risk" individuals and (b) that they default at a rate of 33% per year. That equates to only $250 Billion dollars of default per year (1.25% of the annual GDP).

You should have taken an Economics course or two while attending this alleged University with a prestigious alumni base. :rolleyes:

Peetz, at 33% default, bondholders would run for hills. You would have to revamp entire education funding process. It becomes confidence game with system which would roil the world. It is not just pure $ numbers.
 
Yeah, what age group are the folks in congress running things the past 30 years while this happened. Hmmmmm

Not sure the age of the rocket scientists in Wash are completely to blame. However, easily available $ for loans has led to skyrocketing tuitions. The simple truth is the balance of supply and demand isn't good.
A loan for an engineer, or a programmer = easily paid back
A loan for an art history major = not easily paid back.
Are we ready to tell kids what they have to major in to qualify for a loan?
 
Not sure the age of the rocket scientists in Wash are completely to blame. However, easily available $ for loans has led to skyrocketing tuitions. The simple truth is the balance of supply and demand isn't good.
A loan for an engineer, or a programmer = easily paid back
A loan for an art history major = not easily paid back.
Are we ready to tell kids what they have to major in to qualify for a loan?

My answer to your last question is yes.

Loans should be capped based on a major, there should be credit checks/co-signers, and student loans should be discharge-able in bankruptcy.
 
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Tuition should also be based on your major as well.

IMO that’s a terrible idea that will lead to the very same problems we have now. STEMs would be an ungodly price that would put such careers out of the question for anyone other than elites.
 
IMO that’s a terrible idea that will lead to the very same problems we have now. STEMs would be an ungodly price that would put such careers out of the question for anyone other than elites.
Many schools are already doing it including Penn state
Per Academic Year Full-Time*
Per Semester
Part-Time
Per
Credit
Pennsylvania Residents:

Undergraduate:
Lower Division including Associate:
Freshmen & Sophomore 17,416 8,708 726
Upper Division: (a)
Junior & Senior:
Business, EMS, Science, IST, Engineering: (b) 20,780 10,390 866
Nursing 22,484 11,242 937
All Other Programs 18,828 9,414 785
 
o_O
Peetz, at 33% default, bondholders would run for hills. You would have to revamp entire education funding process. It becomes confidence game with system which would roil the world. It is not just pure $ numbers.
I know. I was purposely trying to “dramatize” the unimportance of the student loan debt numbers in the context of the more important “national economy”.

I’m confident that WB’s post is a perfect example of why stupid people should neither become:
  • Parents
  • Lawyers
Preferably not both of the above :oops: o_O
 
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Not sure the age of the rocket scientists in Wash are completely to blame. However, easily available $ for loans has led to skyrocketing tuitions. The simple truth is the balance of supply and demand isn't good.
A loan for an engineer, or a programmer = easily paid back
A loan for an art history major = not easily paid back.
Are we ready to tell kids what they have to major in to qualify for a loan?

The market should dictate that, at least in part. We don't need a nation of Women's Studies majors
 
I may even go so far as to advocate loan forgiveness. Which does more harm, he govt forgiving 1.5 trillion in loans, or our economy going into a deep recession/depression?

I spend $1000/mo on student loans. There are millions more like me. What if we were all pumping that money back into the economy instead of writing a check to Uncle Sam. Wouldn't the jobs created and taxes generated on all that spending go a long way towards covering the 1.5 trillion forgiven over the 20 years those loans would've been repaid? Not to mention saving us from the jobs lost and taxes not generated when our lack of spending affects those who don't have any loans as well. I'm obviously not an economist, but it sure seems like loan forgiveness is better for the deficit long-term than sticking with it.
Well, if that's the case I want my piece of the pie. I lived ridiculously frugally when I was young, not by choice, and managed to create a decent life for myself by saving, investing and building for the future. Don't penalize me for making good decisions. If we have widespread student loan forgiveness I want somebody to cut me a check for the average amount of debt a person is forgiven.
 
You must not spend much time outside the US because if you think Europe has some sort of "fix" for this problem you are wrong.

In France for example, at age 14 about 30% of my friends were told, with no recourse, their future involved fixing cars and AC units. Teachers just gave up on students... letting them walk out of class to go drink beer. It was the opposite of what you imply.

In the UK, where I'm a citizen, they have a massive issue with workers. Why do you think Brexit happened? They have been importing eastern europeans taking the jobs from the "weakest link". Oh but they get a free apartment. Great.

I could go on and on, but yes America is bad. White people especially.

LdN

You are a citizen of the UK?
 
Not sure the age of the rocket scientists in Wash are completely to blame. However, easily available $ for loans has led to skyrocketing tuitions. The simple truth is the balance of supply and demand isn't good.
A loan for an engineer, or a programmer = easily paid back
A loan for an art history major = not easily paid back.
Are we ready to tell kids what they have to major in to qualify for a loan?
Not taking loans, but I explained fairly clearly to what majors I was paying for...
 
You are a citizen of the UK?
You need to be “less transparent” when you’re “physhing”.

Do I need to teach you everything, Grasshopper?

You can’t just come out of nowhere and ask a fellow poster if they are UK citizen. That’s not how the real world and this board “functions”. :)
 
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