A few weeks back to published an EPIGraph about the number of student borrowers by age group. This edition we follow-up with the aggregated loan balance by age group.
As illustrated, the greatest loan volume is centralized in the 30-39-year-old category, followed by the under 30 crowd. The interesting story here is that the volume for the under 30 group is relatively stagnant over the five years illustrated. However, every other group has had relatively large increased. As the greying of American continues, the baby boomers and more recent groups are more educated than ever before and also have been more likely to require student loans for their education. This clearly shows in the graphic.
Percentage growth-wise, the 60+ age group had a 71 percent increase in only five years, followed by the 40-49 (48 percent) and then the 50-59 group (42 percent). Comparatively, the under 30 group increased 6 percent. Our estimate is that the older groups will continue to escalate in terms of the number with student loans as well as the amount owed. And this will put further pressure on the ability of these individuals to retire adequately.
SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of New York (https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackfriedman/2018/06/13/student-loan-debt-statistics-2018/#f21145e7310f).