[dlf]

Public loans are discharged upon death, so there's that. Private loans are not though, and there can still be tax consequences for public loans.

I think the most important theme to this article, aside from the individual story of debt and irresponsibility, is that this looks an awful lot like the way the housing bubble came about. Cheap debt that the borrowers are unable to afford long term. The difference here is that student debt cannot be discharged in bankruptcy, so it seems there would be more people defaulting.

As a side note, the price tag of a degree should not be so high that a career with that degree cannot pay back the debt. This story is unique in that the debt is much older and ballooned due to interest accrual, but there have been a lot of recent graduates with high debt right out the gate with degrees that are much less employable than they used to be.

[ericcumbee]

She had a 6 figure job, but quit because she was miserable. Not to sound Callous...but she should have kept that job and made paying down those loans the first priority.

[danielweber]

If that debt was dischargeable in bankruptcy, then the money wouldn't have been lent, and the schools would experience some kind of price pressure.

[csense]

> Private loans are not though

Really? Who takes responsibility for the deceased person's loan?

[dlf]

The estate, just like with other private debt.