A new report by Smartest Dollar looked at student loan debt in the United States. While forbearance programs keep the rate of student loan delinquencies and the burden of student loan debt suppressed for now, the longer term trend shows that student loan debt has been rising steadily for years. When forbearance programs end, Americans carrying high levels of student loan debt may struggle to pay.
Researchers ranked states based on the average student loan debt per borrower and included the total student loan debt in each state.
Prior to forbearance programs brought on by the response to COVID-19, student loan debt in Utah totaled $10.0 billion. The average student loan debt balance in Utah was $30,900 per borrower. Even though borrowers in Utah carry such a high debt burden, among all U.S. states, they actually have the 11th lowest average student loan debt per borrower
- Average student loan debt per borrower: $30,900
- Share of borrowers 90+ days delinquent: 11.6%
- Total number of borrowers: 322,300
- Total number of college graduates: 690,314
- Total student loan debt (billions): $10.0
For reference, here are the statistics for the entire United States:
- Average student loan debt per borrower: $34,276
- Share of borrowers 90+ days delinquent: 14.9%
- Total number of borrowers: 43,988,600
- Total number of college graduates: 78,123,130
- Total student loan debt (billions): $1,507.8
