'Killing the middle class': millions in US brace for student loan payments after Covid pause

[turbinetree]

Student debt in America has become a crisis for millions of citizens that often feels like it will last for people’s whole lives

Jennifer Rae Wilson, a social worker and single mother of three children in Richland, Washington, has struggled with student loan debt since she went back to school and graduated in 2000 – more than two decades ago.

Struggling to raise three boys with very little child support, Wilson decided to attend college 10 years after graduating high school to improve her career prospects. She was eventually able to move out of low-income assistance housing and off government assistance programs.

“But then the school loans hit,” said Wilson. “I couldn’t afford the payments on top of rent and all of the other things, there was no way that I could make those payments.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/dec/09/us-student-loan-crisis-payments

I am one of the people that have a student loan, it will not be paid off until 2027, upon my discovery on this issue, which are many, if someone has a loan and they are prior to 2010, you cannot from what I got back from the US Department of Education , and the Federal Student Loan agency within the government any forgiveness, you can restructure your loan and if you do something in the public area like teaching or working for a non profit, or some of the other criteria on the list, you have to do it for ten years to qualify for the forgiveness .....my beef, is that during the 2008 banking crises or if someone becomes injured and decided to go back to school and take out these loans, why did we bail out banks but not students, that were in many cases losing jobs, homes, so that they wanted to retrain... ect....and some of those people are now collecting Social Security and if they default they can take up to 15%% of your social security check to pay off that loan...this is a crises and it is going to get worse....

[aocommunalpunch]

1. The donor class continues to keep the people in virtual debtor's prison.

Since nothing is being done about it, I assume TPTB just can’t do anything about it. They wouldn’t ignore an easy fix that could drive voters to the polls, right?

[Chuuku Davis]

2. I need help with this.

I graduated in the mid 80s with post grad and under grad degrees and loans.
It took me eight years to pay them all off, counting the three years I did service work in a rural area.

Why shouldn't anyone else need to repay their loans like I did?

Please don't bash me, just explain what I am missing.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

4. Because many things have changed when it comes to the model of paying for higher

education, the funding and cost of education, and so on. And sometimes other people get breaks that you don't.

[Chuuku Davis]

5. Please explain

Specifics of those things you listed.
Note that I was asking for the actual details of the explanation in my first post.
I am still not understanding. I signed a contract and it to took my wife and I living in a mobile home, driving a crappy old Civic (required 2 head gaskets if you know the old CVCCs), eating ramen and, hitting food banks every week to fulfill the notes, plural. We did it three years early.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

6. I'm curious, do you think everyone should go through the struggle you did to repay loans?

[Chuuku Davis]

8. Yes

I signed a contract.

I also paid off our home and our two (used) cars early. We made sacrifices but are now debt free.

Maybe growing up in the 60s and 70s gave us a different view on obligations?

And I don't mean to sound like our parents and grandparents but I guess I do.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

9. To be clear, you want people to struggle when they don't have to, because you did?

[shrike3]

13. Sounds like it.

[Chuuku Davis]

17. I signed a contract

And made sacrifices to pay it off.
Is there something wrong with that?

[WhiskeyGrinder]

18. If whoever held your debt had decided to cancel it for whatever reason, would you have said no?

[BannonsLiver]

24. They're basically saying you're a sucker for paying it off.

[Chuuku Davis]

19. I think people should fulfill the contract they signed.

So you don't think borrowers should stick to their contracts? Maybe make sacrifices to pay off their contract?
And yes we sacrificed for about 10 years.. Now have kids, grandkids, and no debt.

Have you ever signed a contract?

I have been suggesting my grandkids to be electricians or robotics techs.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

21. You mentioned your contract again, I'll ask again:

If whoever held your debt had decided to cancel it for whatever reason, would you have said no?

So you don't think borrowers should stick to their contracts?

I don't really have an opinion one way or the other about what people "should" do about their contracts, but I am all for eliminating contracts that are bringing deep struggles to individuals and hamstringing the economy at large.

Have you ever signed a contract?

Many.

I have been suggesting my grandkids to be electricians or robotics techs.

Not sure what this has to do with anything, but okay.

[Act_of_Reparation]

22. "A different view on obligations"

Yes, if the 60's and 70's generation is known for anything it's their sense of obligation. That's why they were able to solve the climate crisis so quickly.

[GrapesOfWrath]

26. Lol

[leftstreet]

10. You had a post grad degree but hit food banks and ate ramen?

What was your degree area?

I'd be curious what your degree cost in the 80s vs now

[shrike3]

12. People are obsessed with the notion that someone somewhere is getting something they don't deserve.

Why we can't make any progress.

[Chuuku Davis]

20. Healthcare

I think it was about $220,000 but it has been a while. That is a total.

[Dave says]

11. Things change

My freshman year's tuition was $4300. Today - same school, same program - tuition is over $60,000. That excludes room and board. If you adjust for inflation, that tuition should be a little over $16,000. Things change!!

Also, when I went to school, there was a lot more grant money available. Today, if one wants a university education and you're not in the top 1%, be prepared to borrow. A lot.

[NickB79]

15. The cost of living is substantially higher now

Housing, child care, auto payments, health care, etc.

It's not uncommon to graduate with $100,000 or more in student loans today. A college grad trying to get that paid off in 8 years would have to put off most major life decisions (buying a house, getting married, having children) well into their 30's. And that's exactly what we're seeing now.

[MineralMan]

28. It's Not Just about You.

Few things are. You paid off your student loans, and that's wonderful that you were able to. It's something you can be proud of.

However, everyone is not you. Not even close. Here's a different example of something similar:

I'm not homeless. I've never been homeless. I've always earned enough, even in lean times, to be able to have a roof over my head. Whether it was rent or a mortgage, I paid it, on time, every month. However, I've also known people who have been homeless. I've volunteered as a cook in a homeless shelter. I donate generously every year to a homeless shelter in my area. Why? Because there are people who need that help, and need it desperately.

I don't tell them, as some do, "Go get a job, you slacker!" I would never do such a thing. For whatever reason, homeless people cannot afford that roof over their head, so I do what I can to help.

See, that's the thing. Doing what you can to help is what we're supposed to do. If we have good fortune, we owe that help to people who do not have good fortune. In a small way, it is payment for our own good fortune.

So, you were able to pay off your student loans. That's wonderful. But, instead of denying help to others who cannot do that the stability that comes from being able to pay them off, helping them is a better choice. Yes, it might cost you something to do so, but it's payment for your own good fortune. Pay it forward.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

3. This is going to shoot the economy right in the foot, and it's going to be ugly.

[Initech]

7. The loans are too damn high!

I'm transferring to a full 4 year university next year and I am seriously dreading the loans. Especially after knowing what my brothers are paying for theirs. Though I don't plan to go as high in education as they did.

[lindalou65]

14. The Student Loan crisis

I can sympathize with those who have scrimped to pay off their loans early. I am retired from local government and went back to school after my 21 years of service to pursue my doctorate. Unfortunately, I did not complete it but racked up about $40,000 worth of student loan debt. I don't regret going back to school. Since 2012, I have paid off about half of what I owe and am dreading the return to payments again. I have worked part-time since 2012 to make it less stressful on my husband and I. Now, I am no longer working part-time and may need to find something again soon depending on how much my loan payment will be. My husband and I won't have house payments now but still with a fixed income it becomes pretty stressful to have the debt.

I don't know what the solution is (for those of us already in debt) and I will continue to pay my loan even if I still have to work, but I wish at least the interest rate could be lowered---that would help a lot. I am 74 and I assume if I pay about $350 per month, I would have it paid off in 5 years. Maybe in the near future another way can be found to make college tuition more affordable for the average person.

[roamer65]

16. We need a restructuring in American higher education.

The first two years after high school should be done at more affordable community colleges, with more generous federal funding. At that point, students can either select vocational or pre-university routes.

The remaining two years for bachelors degrees for pre-uni students should then be done at actual universities.

Dump the stupid ACT and SAT tests. One standardized university acceptance test.

[Mosby]

23. I'm going to keep harping about this.

Why does it cost 10s of thousands of dollars per year to attend a state university? Where is all that money going? Not to the teachers.

[madinmaryland]

27. The state and federal money that supported state universities has dried up or been drastically

Cut back, because, you know, tax cuts for the rich and large corporations are for more important than the education of our young people.