The U.S. Senate approved a bipartisan deal that would ensure lower interest rates on loans for students heading to college this fall.
The bill has provisions for rates to go higher in coming years. It is expected to become law, with support from the White House and the House of Representatives, which will likely take up the bill in coming days. Ref. CNN
The House gave final congressional approval to a bipartisan student loan bill that would roll back a July 1 rate hike on some loans and tie future rates to financial markets. The vote was 392 to 31.
The measure now goes to President Obama for his signature, and the administration has said it supports the bill. Ref. CNN
Student Loans Hit Record $1.08 Trillion; Delinquent Student Debt Rises To All Time High:
By comparison, total credit card debt as of the same period was "Only" $683 billion. At this rate, total student loans will be double the size of all credit card debt within 2-3 years. Ref. Source 7
Is student debt responsible for 'boomeranging' among young adults?
While student loan debt has reached an all-time high, it does not increase young adults' risk of 'boomeranging' or returning to their parental home, according to a study. Boomerangers, surprisingly, had less student loan debt than young adults who didn't return home. However, researchers found that the link between debt and boomeranging varied by ethnicity, finding an increased risk of boomeranging among black, but not white, youth. Ref. Source 2z.
What about free college? Student loan debt forgiveness may be dead, but the cost of college in the first place is going largely unaddressed. There is little the federal government can do to keep the price of a degree in check. It’s driven by how much state lawmakers provide to public universities and how private institutions set tuition. In the meantime, the federal government is largely focused on addressing the impact of student loans on the 44 million people holding education-related debts. Source 3q.