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Student Loan Tax Bomb Could Hit Up To 3.2 Million Borrowers
▲ 86 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Student Loan Tax Bomb Could Hit Up To 3.2 Million Borrowers

  • New report estimates 1.9M to 3.2M IDR borrowers will owe tax on forgiveness by 2036.
  • PSLF and disability discharges are still tax-free.
  • Protect Borrowers estimates added federal tax of roughly $6,000 to nearly $12,000 on the average $49,697 forgiven balance.
forbes.com
u/investor100 — 8 days ago
▲ 2 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Average Student Loan Debt By State In 2026

  • Find your state in our interactive map for your individual numbers.
  • D.C. has the highest average federal balance ($56,200). Maryland leads the states ($45,600), and North Dakota is lowest ($30,200).
  • Just over half of borrowers owe less than $20,000, but the 2.7% who owe $200,000+ hold 21.1% of all federal student loan dollars.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 8 days ago
▲ 49 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Bipartisan Senate Bill Would Remove $35,000 Limit On Rolling 529 Plans Into Roth IRAs

  • The 529 Retirement Enhancement Act of 2026 would remove the $35,000 aggregate cap from the SECURE 2.0 rollover rules.
  • The 15-year account rule, five-year contribution look-back, earned income requirement, and annual Roth IRA limit all remain.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 9 days ago
▲ 10 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Only One In Three Public Four-Year Colleges Is Affordable For Low-Income Students, NCAN Finds

  • Share of public four-year colleges affordable for low- and moderate-income students, by state.
  • NCAN counts a college as affordable when grants, federal loans, work-study, expected family contribution and a minimum-wage summer job cover the full in-state price plus $300 for emergencies.
  • Nationally, 32% of public four-year colleges pass. Twelve states have zero.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 9 days ago
▲ 1 r/TheCollegeInvestor

The Six Biggest Money Derailers In College (And How To Avoid Them)

  • A fifth year at an in-state public costs about $25,850 in tuition, housing and food, $30,990 with books and transportation (College Board 2025–26)
  • The GAO found transfer students lost an estimated 43% of their credits on average, 37% between public schools
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 9 days ago
▲ 5 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Treasury Will Auto-Open Trump Accounts For 68 Million Kids Starting October 1

  • Treasury will auto-open Trump accounts for every eligible kid starting Oct 1 — but auto-opened accounts can't get the $1,000 without a parent filing Form 4547
  • The auto account can only hold contributions from states, tribes, and nonprofits (plus the $1,000 pilot deposit, and only if a parent already filed the election). Treasury says it can't make the pilot election for you.
  • To contribute yourself or through an employer, you have to "claim" the account through a Treasury portal that isn't live yet. Claiming moves the balance into an account you control.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 15 days ago
▲ 40 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Protect College Sports Act Passes Senate 77-22: What It Means For NIL Money

  • Schools could pay athletes close to $50M a year per school through the revenue-sharing cap, a $22.5M retention fund, and up to $5M tied to non-revenue sports.
  • Agent fees would be capped at 5%, athletes get one transfer without losing eligibility, and state NIL laws would be preempted.
  • NIL income is still subject to the 15.3% self-employment tax and still counts on the FAFSA two years after it's earned.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 17 days ago
▲ 32 r/TheCollegeInvestor

IRS Adds Citizenship Question To Draft 2026 Form 1040

  • The page-one question asks if you and your spouse are a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or authorized to work in the U.S.
  • A new draft Schedule 3-A uses a narrower "qualified alien" test, so DACA, TPS, and visa holders could answer yes on the 1040 and still lose the refundable portion of the EITC, CTC, AOTC, and adoption credit.
  • Treasury estimates 200,000 to 700,000 filers affected and $0.7B to $2.6B in disallowed refunds; comments on the rule close October 5 and a hearing is set for October 14.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 18 days ago
▲ 4 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Student Loan Borrowers In Their 40s Have 45% Smaller 401(k) Balances, EBRI Finds

  • 401(k) participants with student loans have median balances ~45% lower in their 40s than non-borrowers
  • Borrowers enrolled at lower rates when eligible (75.5% vs 84.1% at ages 25-34) and contributed less at every income level
  • SECURE 2.0 lets employers match student loan payments in the 401(k). Adoption is still low, so worth asking your plan administrator
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 20 days ago
▲ 11 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Student Loan Forgiveness Programs In 2026: Every Way To Qualify

  • PSLF is unchanged and still tax-free ($87.6B for 1.18M borrowers to-date).
  • IDR forgiveness over 20/25/30 years.
  • Career programs with 2026 amounts: NHSC $75K, Nurse Corps up to 85%, NIH $50K/yr, VMLRP $40K/yr, federal SLRP $10K/yr.
  • Nearly every state offers some type of student loan repayment assistance program.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 21 days ago
▲ 244 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Student Loan Defaults Hit 9.3 Million As 1.5 Million More Borrowers Near Default, FSA Data Shows

  • 9.3M federal student loan borrowers in default as of June 30, up 400K in one quarter
  • Defaulted borrowers owe $234B, about 14% of the $1.64T federally managed portfolio (vs. roughly 12.5% in December 2019)
  • About 1.5M borrowers are in late-stage delinquency, which FSA says puts them at risk of default within six months
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 22 days ago
▲ 1 r/TheCollegeInvestor

What Colleges Look For In 2026-27: Test Scores Are Back And Legacy Is Fading

  • You can see how much a college weighs legacy, interest and geography in its Common Data Set (section C7)
  • Section C7 rates about 18 factors as Very Important, Important, Considered, or Not Considered, including "level of applicant's interest" and "alumni/ae relation"
  • Legacy use fell from 49% of four-year colleges in 2015 to 24% in 2025, though 56% of the most selective still use it
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 22 days ago
▲ 429 r/TheCollegeInvestor

New Bipartisan Bill Would Count SAVE Forbearance Months Toward PSLF, No Buyback Required

  • H.R. 10298 (PSLF Inclusion Act of 2026) would count administrative forbearance months as qualifying payments and let first 60 payments count on any plan
  • It would also officially add the tiered standard plan as a qualifying plan for PSLF
  • This is the fifth attempt at something similar, and none have gained traction before
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 24 days ago
▲ 11 r/TheCollegeInvestor

New Bill Would Limit International Student Athletes To 20% Per College Team, Starting In 2029

  • New House bill would cap international athletes at 20% per college team, enforced through federal student aid eligibility
  • Takes effect in 2029 if passed
  • Teams with fewer than 10 athletes get one international spot. The definition also covers anyone who's taken money from a foreign Olympic committee, including U.S. citizens.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 27 days ago
▲ 10 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Judge Blocks DHS Four-Year Student Visa Cap One Day Before It Started

  • Federal judge blocks DHS four-year cap on F, J and I visas one day before it was set to take effect
  • The rule would have capped F and J admission at four years and I visas at 240 days, with extensions decided at an officer's discretion and no appeal available within DHS
  • Judge Saylor found the rule arbitrary and capricious under the APA
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 28 days ago
▲ 105 r/TheCollegeInvestor

New York Drops Its Graduation Exam As 45% Of Seniors Fail Basic Math Skills Nationwide

  • Three diploma types (Local, Regents, Regents with Advanced Designation) collapse into one state diploma
  • Regents exams still exist as standards measures, but districts will write their own assessment strategies — the statewide replacement test hasn't been designed yet, with regulatory adoption scheduled for June 2027
  • This is happening at a time when 45% of US 12th graders score below NAEP Basic in math, and UC San Diego's remedial math enrollment went from 32 students in 2020 to 921 in 2025
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 29 days ago
▲ 2 r/TheCollegeInvestor

Wellesley Makes Tuition Free For Families Earning Under $200,000

  • Wellesley raises free tuition threshold to $200,000, up from $150,000 set in January
  • Asset test applies: families need "typical assets" for their income, so business owners and landlords may not qualify at the same income
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 1 month ago
▲ 89 r/TheCollegeInvestor

New Bill Would Cut Federal Aid To Colleges That Can't Get Students Licensed

  • New bill (S. 5021 / H.R. 9748) would strip federal aid from programs that don't qualify graduates for licensure in their own state
  • The bill would make a school ineligible for federal aid on any program marketed toward a licensed profession unless completion qualifies the student to sit for the exam where they live, and unless the school itself provides the clinical placement or apprenticeship.
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 1 month ago
▲ 86 r/TheCollegeInvestor

This Couple Owed $983 On The RAP Student Loan Plan. They Were Billed $1,966

  • RAP calculates one household payment for joint filers — if you and your spouse are each being billed the full amount, that's an error
  • A reader with $100k in combined federal loans and $118k in joint AGI should owe $983/month total, not $980 each
  • Servicer guidance states the joint-filer payment is reduced when the spouse also has federal loans
thecollegeinvestor.com
u/investor100 — 1 month ago