Past students not eligible for Obama loan bailout

The Atlantic’s Daniel Indiviglio has a good piece on President Obama’s new student loan executive order showing that the program will only save the average graduate less than $10 a month. Indiviglio writes:

Of all these parts of Obama’s executive order, the loan forgiveness aspect will have the least impact. By moving the timeline from 25 to 20 years, it could be significant in the long run — but it won’t be felt for decades. Remember, 82% of the current student loan debt outstanding was accrued in just the past decade. So it will be at least another 10 years before any of those borrowers have hit the 20-year mark in their student loan payments.

Actually it’s a lot weaker even than that. Indiviglio appears to have overlooked the fact former students — the vast majority of those who have racked up student debt over the last decade — won’t qualify for the program. The College Fix reports:

To qualify for the income-based repayment program, however, a borrower’s loan must have originated during or after 2008, and have at least one loan that originated in 2012 or later. Thus, if you graduated in 2011 or earlier, you don’t qualify.

In other words, this plan is forward looking only. If you have already graduated, can’t find a job, and are occupying a tent in a park, you don’t qualify. Most people who heard Obama’s speech, have debt, and graduated over the past ten years, probably think they will benefit from Obama’s plan. These potential voters are all in for a big disappointment when they find out they don’t qualify for Obama’s latest bailout.

UPDATE: As I was posting this, Indiviglio updated his post:

[W]hether or not you can benefit from the new 10% cap depends on when you took out your first student loan. You may qualify if:

You took out all of your loans in 2012 or later (future students)
You took out the loans in question after 2008 and a loan after 2012 (mostly current students)

So if you graduated college in 2011, then you don’t qualify. (But you could still qualify for the 15% cap. I’m just considering Obama’s executive order here.)
Finally, if you’re already in default, then you won’t qualify.

Related Content