How many student loan borrowers are there

Approximately The nationwide total student loan debt balance increased 8. The average student loan debt, meanwhile, increased 4.

By July, In early , While many private lenders offered suspension in payments of up to 3 months, few if any deferred interest. Between the 3 rd and 4 th financial quarters, student loans in forbearance declined 0.

Also during that period, the number of loans in repayment grew The number of loans in default also declined by 1. Student Loan Debt Statistics Student loan debt is now the second-highest consumer debt category.

First-generation college students are twice as likely to report they are behind in making student loan payments. Graduates of private, for-profit institutions are more than twice as likely to report late student loan payments. The student loan debt growth rate outpaces the rise in tuition costs by Private Student Loan Debt Private loan borrowing constitutes 8.

Other Educational Debt Student loans are designed to only cover certain educational costs. Student Loan Debt by Sex or Gender And that figure uses an arcane and unrealistic accounting method required by federal law. And that largely excludes the cumulative losses already anticipated on loans issued prior to More adults between 18 and 35 are living at home, and fewer of them own homes than was the case for their counterparts a decade or two ago.

But these trends are mostly due to these folks entering the work force during the Great Recession rather than due to their student loans. Income-driven repayment plans are designed to ease the burden of student loans for those borrowers whose earnings are not high enough to afford payments under the standard plan. Basically, these plans set the monthly loan payment based on family income and size.

Unlike the standard repayment plan, any outstanding balances in the income-driven repayment plans are forgiven after 20 or 25 years of payment. There are currently 8. Even admirers of the income-driven repayment approach say the current approach in the U. Still, many experts see an improved version of income-driven repayment schemes as a promising approach for the future.

Some Democratic candidates are proposing to forgive all Bernie Sanders or some student debt. Former Vice President Joe Biden would enroll everyone in income-related payment plans though anyone could opt out. After 20 years, any unpaid balance would be forgiven. Pete Buttigieg favors expansion of some existing loan forgiveness programs, but not widespread debt cancellation. Forgiving student loans would, obviously, be a boon to those who owe money—and would certainly give them money to spend on other things.

But whose loans should be forgiven? Loan forgiveness proposals also raise questions of fairness: Is forgiving all or some outstanding loans fair to those who worked hard to pay off their debts? Is it fair to taxpayers who did not attend college? Private student loan debt comprises around 7. Here are some key stats about the 43 million Americans with student debt:. In general, women borrow more for college compared with men, and Black students borrow more compared with all other races and ethnicities.

But the most borrowers are in the to age group. Among those 24 and younger, most 2. Among to year-olds, most 3. Among to year-olds, most 2. Among to year-olds, most 1. Source: Studentaid. Asian and Hispanic student loan borrowers have the lowest debt loads compared with all other races and ethnicities, while Black student loan borrowers tend to hold the greatest average debt, federal data shows. The average debt disparity is exacerbated even further for Black women, who carry higher average debt than women across all races and ethnicities, according to the American Association of University Women.

Women hold two-thirds of all outstanding loan debt compared with men, according to an analysis of federal data by the AAUW.

There's little data available that includes gender-nonconforming student borrowers. Census Bureau. Parents have one federal student loan option to help pay for their children's education: parent PLUS loans. Total parent PLUS borrowers: 3. If borrowers can't make payments, they can postpone them through deferment or forbearance.

Interest typically accrues during these periods, but borrowers with subsidized loans don't owe the interest that accrues during deferment. The number of borrowers in forbearance spiked in due to the student loan relief offered by the government.

The Office of Federal Student Aid has also temporarily suspended delinquency and default data. Federal loan borrowers in school: 6. Federal borrowers in grace period: 1. Federal loan borrowers in repayment: , Federal loan borrowers in deferment: 3. Federal loan borrowers with loans in forbearance: Federal loan borrowers in default: 5. Borrowers can also postpone private student loan payments via deferment or forbearance, but interest always accrues regardless of whether the borrower is making payments.

Percentage of outstanding private loan balance in deferment: Percentage of outstanding private loan balance in forbearance: 3. Applications approved for federal student loan forgiveness:.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness : 8, approved among , applications — 2. Source: Federal student loan forgiveness data: April