New Graduates Get a Degree and DEBT

Bankruptcy Attorneys' nationwide have dubbed the progressively worsening dilemma facing recent college graduates the "next debt bomb".

How bad is it? Accordingly a recent survey conducted by the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys - 81 percent of bankruptcy lawyers report that the number of prospective clients with student loan debt has increased "significantly" or "somewhat" in the past few years.

Here are some of the highlights of the survey: 

• Nearly two out of five bankruptcy attorneys (39 percent) have seen potential student loan client cases jump 25-50 percent in the last three to four years. About a quarter of bankruptcy attorneys (23 percent) have seen such cases jump by 50 percent to more than 100 percent.
• Most bankruptcy attorneys (95 percent) report that few student loan debtors are seen as having any chance of obtaining a discharge as a result of undue hardship.
• More than four out of five bankruptcy attorneys (82 percent) see the limited availability of student loan discharge in bankruptcy as "a big problem" barring a fresh start for clients.
• Nearly two out of three bankruptcy attorneys (65 percent) say that student loan provider debt collections have become "much more" or "somewhat more" aggressive in the last 18 months.

According to an article published by The New America, "Most of those clients, the association affirmed, were unable to meet the federal hardship criteria required to exempt their student loans through bankruptcy proceedings. Consequently, many loan co-signers, who are often parents or guardians, are required to cover the payments".


Student loan debt has boosted in recent years to a sum of $867 billion in 2011, which surpasses the $704 billion in outstanding U.S. credit card debt. 

Throughout the 2010-11 school year, students racked up $104 billion in loan debt from the Education Department — a 50-percent spike in three years — while private education loans dipped by 65 percent in that same period, to $7.9 billion.

Posted in new graduate bankruptcy , student loan debt