National Council on Educating Black Children

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The U.S. Middle Class Got Addicted to Payday Loans

A few years ago, the microfinance business was in decline, regulators put up barriers, online stores disappeared, and investors fled en masse from the largest companies in the industry. Today, many subprime loan operators are promoting online installment loans with much longer repayment periods, but at the same time with high interest rates. While payday loans are often used by consumers with low incomes, the new form of loan is aimed at Americans with an average income facing stagnating wages and delinquent utility bills.

US Education Loans Approaching $1.6 Trillion, Most of Them Unlikely to Be Repaid

The average cost of a 4-year study at an American college in 2020 was $104,480, that is, twice as much as, for example, in 1989 ($52,892). Each year, the cost of education increased by 2.6%, while salaries grew by only 0.3%. However, 6 out of 10 Americans believe that such a high cost is justified: in the United States, higher education earns on average 75% more money in a lifetime than just a high school diploma. The quality of American higher education is recognized all over the world: in the top ten of almost any world university ranking, American universities occupy half of the places. It is not surprising that in 2020 7 out of 10 students studied with borrowed money.