Student Loan Default Rate Continues to Decline
Data released by the Education Department Wednesday showed that the share of borrowers defaulting on their student loans has declined for the sixth straight year.
Of borrowers who entered repayment in 2016, 10.1 percent had defaulted on their loans by 2018 — down from 10.8 percent from the previous year.
For-profit colleges had the highest rate of defaults at 15.2 percent compared to 9.6 percent at public and 6.6 percent at private colleges.
Borrowers enter default when they go more than 270 days without making a payment on their federal student loans. That outcome leads to damaged credit scores and can mean wages or government benefits are garnished. Borrowers in default are also barred from accessing additional federal student aid until their loans are repaired…. (continue reading)