How student loan borrowers received the news of President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan getting canceled by the Supreme Court.
Cesar Toledo, a student loan borrower from D.C. (Photo: DCist)
Student Loan Borrowers In D.C. Area Dismayed Over The Cancelation Of Student Loan Forgiveness
Cesar Toledo said he “felt like a weight lifted off my shoulders” when he discovered that the majority of his student loan debt may be forgiven last year. Toledo currently has a student loan debt of up to $25,000. He would have received a $20,000 forgiveness under President Biden‘s student loan forgiveness program. With the news of their student loans getting canceled under Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, he and his partner started to think of adopting a child and starting a family.
But when the Supreme Court shut down the forgiveness plan last June, their plans were ruined. He will now have to begin paying back those loans, along with millions of other student loan borrowers, in October, as student loan interest will resume on September 1.
Toledo told DCist/WAMU that the SCOTUS’ decision was ” like a punch in the gut.” Toledo also shared that because of the cancelation of the student loan forgiveness plan, they would have to push back some major decisions in their lives. He is currently unsure of how to start paying back his debts specifically. If he stays in the area, he calculates that it will take him around 10 years to pay off his debt.
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What Would Have Happened To Student Loan Borrowers In D.C. If Biden’s Student Loan Forgiveness Was Approved.
The D.C. area is currently home to a massive number of student loan borrowers and some of the largest student debt loads in the country. Many of the locals just graduated from college, and the high cost of living in the area makes it much harder for some borrowers.
Some local student loan borrowers were essentially debt-free thanks to Biden’s forgiveness plan. Federal student loans up to $20,000 were meant to be canceled, as per the plan’s coverage. Many student loan borrowers were in the position to start thinking about buying homes earlier, like Toledo.
Other student loan borrowers who were dealing with much larger debts would have been eligible under Biden’s forgiveness plan. $36,000 in student loans were owed by Dylan Wolters, a data scientist in Washington, D.C. Dylan would have been able to handle paying the $36,000 debt if his $20,000 debt was forgiven.
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