posted by iclfan2

Trying to buy votes before the mid-terms… If you do this, how do you continue to give student loans now and in the future? 

BREAKING: President Biden is looking at different options to forgive most, if not all, federal student loan debt, per @CBSNews. The move could affect more than 43 million borrowers who hold more than $1.6 trillion in federal student loan debt.

— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) April 26, 2022

This should certainly force these colleges to reign in their cost structures.  Problem solved.  

I’m sorry I paid off my student debt some years back.  Had I known Uncle Joe would take care of it, I’d have held out.

posted by Dr Winston O'Boogie

This should certainly force these colleges to reign in their cost structures.  Problem solved. 

I'm not sure how much of the bill colleges actually foot.  Almost none, I think.

I think you're right, though.  If you can somehow make colleges accountable and on the hook for it all, college will suddenly become much more affordable.

posted by iclfan2

Trying to buy votes before the mid-terms… If you do this, how do you continue to give student loans now and in the future?

I'm not sure how legal this all is.  Also, I don't think Biden has any ability to cancel all the private debt, which typically has much higher interest rates.  I'd imagine a lot of students would cheer this move, only to discover it actually does nothing for them, personally.

You bring up a really good point, though.  Which is fucking around with this can really screw things up for a long time.  I'm not overly empathetic for the idiot that took out $200k for an art history degree from Columbia.  Why should he get a bail out? 

Now what is fundamentally different with student loans, is you can't normally discharge it in bankruptcy.  If you could, even partially, the interest rates would skyrocket and the availability would plummet (which would make higher education only for the rich and elite, once again).

posted by gut

I'm not sure how much of the bill colleges actually foot.  Almost none, I think.

I think you're right, though.  If you can somehow make colleges accountable and on the hook for it all, college will suddenly become much more affordable.

Colleges are on the hook for none of it.  It was my attempt at sarcasm.  Easy loans incented colleges to blow up their costs and this gift from Biden seems to only encourage it more .  I’m not an economist, but it seems like a good case study in micro 101 (taught by a grad assistant of course).

heh

Sir, it gets worse. You can literally walk into Walmart and leave with a M1 Abrams tank. pic.twitter.com/sG25zmRWmc

— Gian B (@gbtiepolo1) April 26, 2022

Is the orange muzzle on the tank really necessary to let people know it's not a real gun?  Granted, some cop will still probably mistake it for the real thing, but I'm not sure that should be our standard..

You could take out a Russian tank with that thing.

posted by gut

Maybe.  Social media has amplified it and made it all 100X worse.  You have people growing up today afraid to have kids because of climate change - that's a person who is going to be EXTREMELY angry in 20 years when the planet is doing just fine.

I think those people always existed, you just know about them now. 

posted by justincredible

heh

Sir, it gets worse. You can literally walk into Walmart and leave with a M1 Abrams tank. pic.twitter.com/sG25zmRWmc

— Gian B (@gbtiepolo1) April 26, 2022

I saw that yesterday and loved how everyone was roasting him. 

posted by gut

I'm not sure how legal this all is.  Also, I don't think Biden has any ability to cancel all the private debt, which typically has much higher interest rates.  I'd imagine a lot of students would cheer this move, only to discover it actually does nothing for them, personally.

You bring up a really good point, though.  Which is fucking around with this can really screw things up for a long time.  I'm not overly empathetic for the idiot that took out $200k for an art history degree from Columbia.  Why should he get a bail out? 

Now what is fundamentally different with student loans, is you can't normally discharge it in bankruptcy.  If you could, even partially, the interest rates would skyrocket and the availability would plummet (which would make higher education only for the rich and elite, once again).

It would be federal student loan debt. I think Biden will just do the forgive up to $10k, which will tick off a lot of progressives.

Student loan debt is a problem, but one solution could be you just lower or 0 out the interest rate. It is usually between 7-9%. If a person is a regular payer, you can just keep the interest rate low of 0 it out so people just pay off the principal. 

The income adjustment payment plans make sense for people of lower income. 

Forgiving all of them is dumb and not practical. 

The debt does not go away; it is simply transferred to the taxpayers.  It is a horrific idea.  At best, the federal government should sell the debt to private entities and let them deal with it.  As for universities, they have little to no skin in the game, and going forward it should be up to each individual school to float the paper, if they so desire.  That would bring about real change. 

posted by ptown_trojans_1

It would be federal student loan debt. I think Biden will just do the forgive up to $10k, which will tick off a lot of progressives.

Student loan debt is a problem, but one solution could be you just lower or 0 out the interest rate. It is usually between 7-9%.

In grad school, in a normal rate environment, I took out federally subsidized loans up to $18k and eventually consolidated (maybe transferred to private) my interest rate and locked in 2.25%. 

I see no reason to forgive low-interest loans.  The second question then becomes why you would forgive higher-interest loans from students who either mean-tested out of subsidized loans, or borrowed in excess of $23k or more?

I wish he'd get my mortgage forgiven.  It's a tremendous burden, and they expect a payment every single month!

posted by Dr Winston O'Boogie

I wish he'd get my mortgage forgiven.  It's a tremendous burden, and they expect a payment every single month!

I'm currently cashing in on all the equity I have in my house. Can we wait about three weeks before we forgive mortgages?

posted by ptown_trojans_1

Student loan debt is a problem,

posted by queencitybuckeye
In what way other than people making a poor financial decision?

Ding ding. If you forgive certain debts above others, probably just going to hurt themselves. You don’t HAVE to go to college. And most that did still have the means to pay, they’re just lazy. Transfer of wealth from the lower class to the middle class if it happens. And how would it not raise inflation? Just clowns all around. 

posted by gut

In grad school, in a normal rate environment, I took out federally subsidized loans up to $18k and eventually consolidated (maybe transferred to private) my interest rate and locked in 2.25%. 

I see no reason to forgive low-interest loans.  The second question then becomes why you would forgive higher-interest loans from students who either mean-tested out of subsidized loans, or borrowed in excess of $23k or more?

Good for you. Mine was 7% and I've seen the norm around that. 

I'm good with as long as people continue to pay, to lower the rates. I'm not forgiving either, just lower the interest over time to make it not as long. 

posted by queencitybuckeye
In what way other than people making a poor financial decision?

Most millennial can't buy a home because they have funds tied up with student loans. I know I had to wait to buy until my student loans were paid off. 

Again, I'm not for forgiveness at all. People should pay, just lower the interest rates.

I'd also say the cost of college has significantly since you probably went.

Imagine believing a 5 year old can pick their gender but 18 year olds can't consent to student loans.

— Blaire White (@MsBlaireWhite) April 27, 2022

posted by ptown_trojans_1

Most millennial can't buy a home because they have funds tied up with student loans. I know I had to wait to buy until my student loans were paid off. 

Again, I'm not for forgiveness at all. People should pay, just lower the interest rates.

I'd also say the cost of college has significantly since you probably went.

Things have changed, that's for sure. What hasn't, however, is that the terms of these loans are spelled out in the contract. I'm not sure why or when people started being OK with not living up to one's word.

posted by queencitybuckeye

Things have changed, that's for sure. What hasn't, however, is that the terms of these loans are spelled out in the contract. I'm not sure why or when people started being OK with not living up to one's word.

Again, I'm not saying they should be forgiven. But, just realize a lot of a generations wealth is tied up to student loan payments. 

That has impacts like for example why millennials are not buying houses or having kids until later and later.

posted by ptown_trojans_1

Again, I'm not saying they should be forgiven. But, just realize a lot of a generations wealth is tied up to student loan payments. 

That has impacts like for example why millennials are not buying houses or having kids until later and later.

I understand, but I also understand that every single loan taken was done voluntarily with a promise in writing to pay it back under specific terms.

The other issue is the notion of wanting government to fix a "problem" where it was a, if not the, primary cause of the "problem" in the first place.

My son is getting ready to attend college, and he will be taking out the max amount he can for federal loans!  Wont buy my vote, but will save me from paying for his college!  

posted by queencitybuckeye

I understand, but I also understand that every single loan taken was done voluntarily with a promise in writing to pay it back under specific terms.

The other issue is the notion of wanting government to fix a "problem" where it was a, if not the, primary cause of the "problem" in the first place.

The student loans we are talking about are federal loans from the Department of Education. So, they are a government problem by default. 

If we are fine with letting these people just be on their own pay back the loans as intended, the impact is people will put off other items like buying houses, having kids, etc. 

It is one of the many reasons why people are renting more and birth rates are down as people basically have like an additional car payment or rent payment to pay every month. 

Private student loans are a whole different box. 

posted by ptown_trojans_1

The student loans we are talking about are federal loans from the Department of Education. So, they are a government problem by default. 

If we are fine with letting these people just be on their own pay back the loans as intended, the impact is people will put off other items like buying houses, having kids, etc. 

It is one of the many reasons why people are renting more and birth rates are down as people basically have like an additional car payment or rent payment to pay every month. 

Private student loans are a whole different box. 

I understand the effects. I'm pretty sure I'm OK with living with them as opposed to having daddy bail us out when we screw up. I'm not 100% sure having the age of parenthood increase is altogether a bad thing.