Here's my personal take on the loan forgiveness. As a result of capitalized interest, I owe more on my student loans than our total gross worth. I found out, too late, that the career I so desperately wanted (to be a professor of English) was not open to me because I am not--nor was I willing to pretend to be--a Far Left Wokie.
Here's my personal take on the loan forgiveness. As a result of capitalized interest, I owe more on my student loans than our total gross worth. I found out, too late, that the career I so desperately wanted (to be a professor of English) was not open to me because I am not--nor was I willing to pretend to be--a Far Left Wokie.
So, for me, $20,000 in loan forgiveness is meaningless. A mere fraction of what I owe, and will never, ever be able to afford to pay back.
For me, the ability to discharge student loans in bankruptcy--after a certain number of years and a clear inability to pay--is the only solution that would help. And it would help all the others who are drowning in unpayable student loans...*without* giving handouts to people with six-figure incomes.
Oi, that sucks : ( Well I graduated with a BS in IT degree (ultimately from a private for profit - the only one doing online courses at the time when I had a baby and could do course work at night after part time work and baby time), that finished up the degree on top of the two years of credits I accumulated from "regular" community college and state u a few years prior but hadn't completed. And I am, thankfully, in renumerative work from that degree and am nothing more than thankful for where it got me.
But.. man, can I tell you that the private loans I had to take out for the private for profit finisher about doubled in 10 years from what I had originally borrowed. And I am paying them back but had to take periods of deferrment for income reasons, but still. Double what I borrowed? Seems insane.
Agree bankruptcy should be reintroduced to student loans - with the caveat that defaulted loans get pushed back on the school. If they didn't provide a degree that was able to be repay the money they put into their pockets when it was disbursed, they should own some of that. But I also think the interest capitalizing on student loans needs a review as well. Because that's probably a huge component as to why some loans are not repayable. They're doubling, tripling, even when you're making the "minimum" payment and doing your due diligence to repay, but it's set up to take much more than you ever borrowed - and this should not be treated like revolving consumer credit interest charging. There should be a flat interest fee that is calculated against the original principle, and that's it.
I'm finally on a path to full repayment but it does grind my gears that I spent years paying interest when the interest continued to capitalize. Yes I get that's how "interest" works but even my mortgage is fairer than how they charged interest with the student loans. Of course knowing you can't declare bankruptcy, why would they do any different?
Oh, the universities benefit vastly from the system exactly the way it is, so they have no incentive to change anything, and every incentive to raise tuition as often as they can get away with it.
Oh, the capitalized interest! I wonder if people realize that student loans are pretty much the only debt where they’re allowed to do that. Both a mortgage and a car loan have a simple interest plan only. The student loan industry is really quite a racket. The mob would be so proud!
my student loan has about doubled the amount I originally borrowed. And I've been paying it all along. What a scam. Of course they can do that knowing you can't discharge it. They'll take it from your Social Security if it goes that long!
I went to college decades ago, to inexpensive state universities, had part time jobs, and only needed $13k student loan, which I paid off in maybe 4 yrs. I never got, nor needed counseling on the loan because I was in a scientific field and my earning expectations were good. So here are my questions—-how do the universities and lenders rationalize lending students so much money? Do they have any responsibility for what they are doing? Shouldn’t there be some sort of counselor helping students understand the earnings potential of different degrees vs their loan payments? It seems criminal to make it so easy to saddle kids with debts, but it’s also unacceptable to forgive their loans. Landscapers who never went to college but pay taxes are paying off those loans.
Colleges take no responsibility. They allow students to believe that OF COURSE they will be able to get a job that will allow them to pay off their loan. In many cases, they know that is unlikely to be true, but that doesn't stop them.
It's very close to child abuse. These kids aren't in a position to fully understand the magnitude of the decisions they're making, that only benefit the lending institutions, the colleges and the Democrat party.
The problem is that colleges do *nothing* to help students consider whether they will be able to get jobs that will allow them to repay the loan. No questions are asked about your major. No information is given about the prospects of future employment.
And it doesn't matter to the university, because they have the money, and they have ZERO responsibility for what happens to the students in the future. There is no incentive to counsel students.
Agree totally. I believe that allowing young people to take on ridiculous amounts of debt, without fully appreciating the risk, and not allowing the debt to be eligible for bankruptcy is criminal. It's evidence of what the real intention of the student loan program is, a troika of Lending institutions. Universities and the federal government to promote an agenda at the cost of the tax payers.
It is horrifying that student loans can be for more than books, tuition, and room and board. The equivalency would be a car loan that would cover the cost of the car, insurance, along with a provision for gas and entertainment costs.
I worked at the Student Accounts department of a well-ranked private university - I can confirm that my department treated these loans like Monopoly money. They were part of the “aid package “ (a laughable term)
Here's my personal take on the loan forgiveness. As a result of capitalized interest, I owe more on my student loans than our total gross worth. I found out, too late, that the career I so desperately wanted (to be a professor of English) was not open to me because I am not--nor was I willing to pretend to be--a Far Left Wokie.
So, for me, $20,000 in loan forgiveness is meaningless. A mere fraction of what I owe, and will never, ever be able to afford to pay back.
For me, the ability to discharge student loans in bankruptcy--after a certain number of years and a clear inability to pay--is the only solution that would help. And it would help all the others who are drowning in unpayable student loans...*without* giving handouts to people with six-figure incomes.
Oi, that sucks : ( Well I graduated with a BS in IT degree (ultimately from a private for profit - the only one doing online courses at the time when I had a baby and could do course work at night after part time work and baby time), that finished up the degree on top of the two years of credits I accumulated from "regular" community college and state u a few years prior but hadn't completed. And I am, thankfully, in renumerative work from that degree and am nothing more than thankful for where it got me.
But.. man, can I tell you that the private loans I had to take out for the private for profit finisher about doubled in 10 years from what I had originally borrowed. And I am paying them back but had to take periods of deferrment for income reasons, but still. Double what I borrowed? Seems insane.
Agree bankruptcy should be reintroduced to student loans - with the caveat that defaulted loans get pushed back on the school. If they didn't provide a degree that was able to be repay the money they put into their pockets when it was disbursed, they should own some of that. But I also think the interest capitalizing on student loans needs a review as well. Because that's probably a huge component as to why some loans are not repayable. They're doubling, tripling, even when you're making the "minimum" payment and doing your due diligence to repay, but it's set up to take much more than you ever borrowed - and this should not be treated like revolving consumer credit interest charging. There should be a flat interest fee that is calculated against the original principle, and that's it.
I'm finally on a path to full repayment but it does grind my gears that I spent years paying interest when the interest continued to capitalize. Yes I get that's how "interest" works but even my mortgage is fairer than how they charged interest with the student loans. Of course knowing you can't declare bankruptcy, why would they do any different?
Oh, the universities benefit vastly from the system exactly the way it is, so they have no incentive to change anything, and every incentive to raise tuition as often as they can get away with it.
Oh, the capitalized interest! I wonder if people realize that student loans are pretty much the only debt where they’re allowed to do that. Both a mortgage and a car loan have a simple interest plan only. The student loan industry is really quite a racket. The mob would be so proud!
Yeah, I was quite shocked that they were allowed to do that.
my student loan has about doubled the amount I originally borrowed. And I've been paying it all along. What a scam. Of course they can do that knowing you can't discharge it. They'll take it from your Social Security if it goes that long!
Celia, thanks for sharing your experience and for not caving. Your talents are well applied here in the comments. I always look for you.
Brad at Euphoric Recall's provides an excellent analysis of the Biden's loan forgiveness https://euphoricrecall.substack.com/p/my-monthly-rent-identifies-as-student
I went to college decades ago, to inexpensive state universities, had part time jobs, and only needed $13k student loan, which I paid off in maybe 4 yrs. I never got, nor needed counseling on the loan because I was in a scientific field and my earning expectations were good. So here are my questions—-how do the universities and lenders rationalize lending students so much money? Do they have any responsibility for what they are doing? Shouldn’t there be some sort of counselor helping students understand the earnings potential of different degrees vs their loan payments? It seems criminal to make it so easy to saddle kids with debts, but it’s also unacceptable to forgive their loans. Landscapers who never went to college but pay taxes are paying off those loans.
Colleges take no responsibility. They allow students to believe that OF COURSE they will be able to get a job that will allow them to pay off their loan. In many cases, they know that is unlikely to be true, but that doesn't stop them.
Read Grisham’s book, Rooster Bar.
It's very close to child abuse. These kids aren't in a position to fully understand the magnitude of the decisions they're making, that only benefit the lending institutions, the colleges and the Democrat party.
One has to wonder why they are allowed to vote then?
I have to disagree.
An 18 year old is old enough to sign up for military service but isn’t old enough to do basic arithmetic?
The problem is that colleges do *nothing* to help students consider whether they will be able to get jobs that will allow them to repay the loan. No questions are asked about your major. No information is given about the prospects of future employment.
And it doesn't matter to the university, because they have the money, and they have ZERO responsibility for what happens to the students in the future. There is no incentive to counsel students.
Then let’s have an intense social media campaign telling kids these degrees from expensive schools aren’t worth it and their debts will crush them.
We'll have the posts deleted, at best, or banned, at worst.
So true, another item to censure.
There’s actually a book about exactly that: John Grisham’s novel, Rooster Bar. It’s pretty good. Sounds like you’d enjoy reading it.
Agree totally. I believe that allowing young people to take on ridiculous amounts of debt, without fully appreciating the risk, and not allowing the debt to be eligible for bankruptcy is criminal. It's evidence of what the real intention of the student loan program is, a troika of Lending institutions. Universities and the federal government to promote an agenda at the cost of the tax payers.
It is horrifying that student loans can be for more than books, tuition, and room and board. The equivalency would be a car loan that would cover the cost of the car, insurance, along with a provision for gas and entertainment costs.
I worked at the Student Accounts department of a well-ranked private university - I can confirm that my department treated these loans like Monopoly money. They were part of the “aid package “ (a laughable term)