Not only does student loan debt affect young to middle-aged adults, it also seems to be affecting a growing number of older Americans. Specifically, the number of Americans age sixty and older with student loan debt has quadrupled in the last decade—from 700,000 in 2005 to 2.8 million in 2015. Oftentimes, these older generations will take out loans to finance their children or grandchildren’s education. These same older Americans also usually carry other types of debt, such as mortgage, credit card, and auto loan debt. Further, carrying the student loan debt can have serious consequences for older adults, including having their Social Security benefits reduced to pay the debt. Older borrowers must certainly consider how educational loans can impact their future.
See Karen Demasters, Student Loan Debts Plague Older Americans, Financial Advisor, January 16, 2017.
