It’s easy to think of student loans as a young person’s problem. But the reality is that a good number of older Americans, including near-retirees, are juggling student loans, either because they’re still paying off their own education or they took out loans to help finance a child or grandchild’s education.
The Urban Institute reports that as of August 2022, about 6% of Americans ages 50 and over had student debt. That amounts to roughly 7.2 million in this age group.
Meanwhile, as of 2022, the Federal Reserve reported an average student loan balance among Americans aged 55 to 64 at nearly $62,000. For those between the ages of 65 and 74, the average balance was about $58,000.
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