The Never-Ending Student Loan for Mothers
As we find ourselves in the frenzy of holiday spending and gift giving, you may be surprised to know that the amount of student loan debt across the country actually exceeds the amount of credit card debt. It used to be that borrowing to buy a house or earn a college degree was called “good debt.” But is that still the case, if you can never pay off the loan? What if your ability to pay off the loan is affected by your gender? In other words, simply by being female, is your student loan debt burden likely to be greater than a man’s? The answer is yes, according to the latest data, and puts women, and especially mothers, at a serious disadvantage.
Imagine for a moment that Ms. Co-ed graduates, secures a job (lucky her!) and starts paying off her average debt of $20,000 in student loans. Eventually, she becomes a mother, assuming the joys and obligations of parenthood, all the while still making regular monthly debt payments. The debt goes down, but doesn’t go away, as her child grows up. Maybe she has a job loss, or a health issue, and misses a couple of payments. Then,
Imagine for a moment that Ms. Co-ed graduates, secures a job (lucky her!) and starts paying off her average debt of $20,000 in student loans. Eventually, she becomes a mother, assuming the joys and obligations of parenthood, all the while still making regular monthly debt payments. The debt goes down, but doesn’t go away, as her child grows up. Maybe she has a job loss, or a health issue, and misses a couple of payments. Then,