conversation: User (Gourdsandpeppers): "Some people seem to think that buying a house is an awful idea right now. "
  Self: "Idk about housing but student loan collapse is on the way "
  Erdrick (Erdrick): "So that's actually something I'm really worried about. \n\nI'm a Gen Xer, and I don't have student loans anymore (I know, I'm gonna get pitchforks and torches for saying that here). But there's a whole generation of students who were (IMO) sold a bill of goods and now have mortgage-sized debts that can't be discharged.\n\nThis does bear some resemblance to the housing crisis. As individuals, those students each bear the responsibility for going to an expensive private school and majoring in basket weaving (I realize I'm leaning on a stereotype here). However, there was a huge amount of societal pressure to follow that path, and there will clearly be economic and social impacts to just telling those students "tough luck buddy!"\n\nIOW, there is both individual and collective responsibility for where we are now.\n\nWhat I really, really don't want to see is a bailout of private student loan lenders. But that's probably what will happen. Billions more of taxpayer dollars that will engorge the balance sheets of private lenders, all while ruining the credit of a generation of college grads who made a bad choice when they were 18.\n\nTime will tell, I suppose."
  CrownChief (CrownChief): "What would be the systemic effects of a student loan burst? The housing market crash hurt big league because it was all tied to those credit default swaps and derivatives. Does student loan debt get packaged and sold like mortgage debt?\n"
  laowai_shuo_shenme (laowai_shuo_shenme): "Since student loan debt can't be discharged, you won't really see that same sudden loss of value like we did in 08. Also the premise of the CDOs and securities was that mortgages are rock solid and very seldom default. I don't think the market would be so confident about student loans.\n\nWhat I'm worried about is a loss of consumer demand. You see a lot of people taking on debt and then not getting a lucrative enough job to match. Even assuming everyone pays their debts, they are left with very little money for other things. Generally, it's the 25-45 demographic that spends a lot of money. They are getting good jobs and buying new cars and having kids and buying houses and filling them with things. What happens as the millennials age up and that key demo can't afford nice things because they've got a mortgage-size payment from the start? Either consumer debt expands (possibly leading to it's own bubble) or demand falls and businesses make cuts to account for that. I'm not excited."
  greenpuddles (greenpuddles): "Also their parents are sometimes helping these grad make their minimum payment and as such eating up their own buying power so even markets that aren't for younger people can be impacted. "
  