Over 60, and Crushed by Student Loan Debt

Americans 60 and up are being squeezed by both their student loan debt and that of their children, which amounted to $86 billion at last count, reports the Wall Street Journal . Student loan borrowers in their 60s owed an average of $33,800 in 2017, a 44 percent increase from 2010, according to TransUnion. Total student loan debt climbed 161 percent for those 60 and older from 2010 to 2017, marking the largest gain for any age group. About 40,000 people 65 and older had their funds garnished from their Social Security checks, tax refunds, or other federal payments in fiscal year 2015 because they defaulted on student or parent loan debt. That represents a whopping 362 percent rise from 10 years before, reports the U.S. Government Accountability Office. TransUnion also calculated that Americans 60 and older owed roughly $615 billion in credit cards, auto loans, personal loans, and student loans as of 2017. That is up 84 percent since 2010. Seniors must work longer, and depend on credit cards and personal loans to pay for basic expenses. About 93 percent of all new private student loan dollars extended to undergraduates during the current academic year included parent or other adults' signatures on them, versus 74 percent in the 2008-09 school term.