Want to create an interactive transcript for this episode?
Podcast: The College Investor Audio Show
Episode: $180 Billion in Student Loans Are Now in Default, New Federal Data Shows
Description: Federal Student Aid released its latest quarterly data update, and the numbers paint a stark picture: 7.7 million borrowers with $180 billion in outstanding federal student loans are now in default as of December 2025.The quarter ending in December marked the first time many borrower accounts could the threshold for default following the end of the pandemic-era payment pause and the subsequent on-ramp protection period.While the number is large, FSA noted that it mirrors the default count from December 2019, when 7.7 million recipients with approximately $168 billion in federal student loans were in default. The $12 billion increase in...