IRS Issues Reminder About Tax-Free Way To Help Employees Pay Student Loans

Student debt has more than tripled since 2006. That year, borrowers collectively owed more than $500 billion in student loan debt—less than car loans and other consumer debt like credit cards. And while debt has overall edged higher for consumers, it’s skyrocketed for student borrowers.

According to the office of Federal Student Aid, as of March 2023, about 44 million borrowers owed more than $1.6 trillion in federal student loans—that total doesn’t include private loans in repayment (like mine).

As students enter college this fall, that number is expected to go up—not down. The average cost of college in the U.S. is $36,436 per student per year, including books, supplies, and daily living expenses (that number can vary widely depending on several factors, including where you live). That’s nearly five times the cost of attending college just 40 years ago—far surpassing the pace of inflation.