Number of Older Student Loan Borrowers Is Growing Rapidly

Most people picture the average student loan borrower to be young but the number of older Americans with student loan debt is now growing more rapidly than any other age group. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) came out with an eye-opening report on the increasing number of older Americans (ages 65+) with student loan debt, as well as the challenges they face compared to younger consumers.

“The number of consumers age 60 and older with outstanding student loan debt quadrupled from 2005 to 2014, increasing from about 700,000 to 2.8 million. During this period, the share of all student loan borrowers that are age 60 and older increased from 2.7 percent to 6.4 percent.” In the past five years alone, the number of older borrowers has increased by at least 20 percent in every state, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. This makes them the fasting growing cohort of the student loan borrower market.

Nearly 40% of these older borrowers are facing default on their loans, the highest of any borrower age group, often having their social security benefits offset to pay their debt. Whether these older borrowers are co-signers of private loans, borrowing on behalf of their children, or repaying their own student loan debt, it’s negatively impacting their financial security.

Click here for the full CFPB snapshot of older student loan borrowers that came out in January and here for an updated statistical report on older borrowers by state that came out last week:

Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.