Intentional policy decision designed to prevent educated people from ever earning enough that they could afford to work less.
this post was submitted on 15 May 2024
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Work Reform
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It's cool. We'll stimulate the economy once we are 65 and out of debt. Surely nothing ill will occur by forcing an entire generation to send all of their expendable income to money lenders.
The American dream.
For anyone curious like I was, this means over 42 million Americans have student debt; almost 13% of the total US population.
Now how much is the interest on those loans for the next few years? How much of the money paid goes toward interest instead of the principle?
I took out one of my most egregious private student loans in the early 2000s for about $30,000. The interest rate is variable, so it goes up regularly. I’ve been paying the minimum (now $475, my largest bill after rent) on time every month since I graduated, and my balance is currently about $32,000. Oh and that’s just one of my many student loans.
There is literally no way out, I’m completely trapped.
Fortunately most of my other loans are federal, so they’re slightly less shitty, though not by much. At least those will eventually be forgiven once I’m too old to care.
I cut my loans in half during the 0% interest rates. It would be awesome if it stayed that way
$40k is a lot lower than I thought the average would be.
I wouldn't have even gone to college if I didn't have access to a privately subsidized university. That said, $40k of debt for four years of education doesn't actually seem so bad, considering living expenses. Being able to live on $10k a year (or less) is impressive.
If that's the average, knowing nothing else at all, we can assume they started with 80k debt. Half are just at the start, and half are almost done paying off.
You're describing the median, not the average.