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by 7Figures2Commas 4695 days ago
Exactly. It amazes me how many people seem to believe that the solution to the student loan debt problem is to allow for discharge in bankruptcy.

Not only will this necessarily force lenders to increase the cost of these loans to borrowers, a lot of folks apparently don't understand that the biggest lender in this market is the federal government. Of the more than $1 trillion in student loans outstanding, about 85% have been provided by the federal government. Just over one in five federal student loans is already in default or delayed default. If the law is changed to permit discharge of these loans in bankruptcy, Student Loan Debt will become Mortgage Market 2.0.
1 comments
avenger123 4695 days ago
Why would this be a bad thing?

if loans are able to be discharged the federal government wouldn't be handing them out like free candy to anyone that wants it.

It's exactly that there is no downside for the government that the situation is the way it is.

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7Figures2Commas 4695 days ago
The problem here is that we can't just use a magic wand to fix the situation. There is over $1 trillion in outstanding student debt that needs to be dealt with. Much of it is already going bad.

But the problem is bigger than the trillion dollars in debt you and I are already on the hook for. A lot of people like free candy, and if you take it away here, we'll go from "Tuition costs are too high, and I have too much debt!" to "Washington politicians are denying me an education!" The education lobby is strong and too many people are dependent on federal student loans for this to be "fixed" in a logical fashion. Everybody has been sold the idea that a college degree is a prerequisite for access to the middle class, and government-subsidized student loans are practically seen as an entitlement.

As much as one can hope for a better system, it isn't likely to come. We're well beyond the point of no return.

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ansible 4695 days ago
As much as one can hope for a better system, it isn't likely to come. We're well beyond the point of no return.

Well, in so far as the people (and our government) who are already in debt, I can't disagree. We're in bad shape.

However, I do have hope. The online instruction revolution is still in its infancy, and I have much hope that quality education will be spread far and wide (at low cost). And that anyone with a reasonable amount of motivation can learn and grow and become more productive and wealthy as a result.

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