Remember the Housing Crisis? Well it appears there are many parrelels with the Housing Crisis and the rise of Student Loan Debt. You may remember the surge in Bankruptcy filings during the housing crisis and some were able to save their homes, others, unfortunately, were not. In a nutshell, the victims of the housing crisis had options afforded to them, one of which was filing a Bankruptcy.
I have witnessed first hand, the cumulative effect of student loans on young, middle-aged and older Americans who had the drive and will to complete their vision and Graduate with a degree. I have sat in my officelooked at their Student Loan Statements while sitting in my office. When it came time to read the add ons: Penalties, Interests and so forth, my mouth would drop. This unmanageable debt places a metaphorical noose around their neck. How do they get ahead, move forward, give back to society, purchase a home, raise a family and build a promising future?
The problem is, there isn’t a realistic remedy for discharging Student Loan Debt in a Bankruptcy.At first, the Housing Crisis was insidious. And so goes the Student Loan Yellow Brick Road. Well, how big of a problem is it really?
According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s 2016 Q3 “Report on Household Debt and Credit, outstanding student loan balances stood at $1.3 trillion as of September 30, 2016, growing by $20 billion from the second quarter of last year. At that time, 11 percent of aggregate student loan debt was 90 or more days delinquent or in default”
Many people straddled with Student Loan Debt have had to lean on friends, family, government assistance, small business loans, lenders, unsecured bank loans and credit card company’s in order to survive. I have had to file Bankruptcy’s for Grandparents who co-signed student loans, lived off of credit cards to pay the Student Loans and then found themselves in a heap of debt. Their Golden Years are not so golden.
When feeling forced to make painful decisions, call and consult a Professional and explore your options moving forward.
