College Loans are Now the Last Leg in the Debt Pyramid

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Some parents are so averse to public schools that they’re taking out hefty “pre-college” loans to cover the costs of their child’s full tuition from kindergarten through 12th grade.

SmartMoney’s Annamaria Andriotis describes the risks of this trend:

“Parents could be on the hook to repay K-12 and college loans simultaneously. Already, about one in six parents of college graduates have loans, and they’re projected to owe nearly $34,000 on average this year, according to FinAid.org. Taking on loans before college leaves parents at risk of owing larger sums of debt, experts say.”

Let’s not forget that college students’ loan debt passed the trillion dollar mark months ago, creating some real-live horror stories for millennials. One student, Nick Keith, took on the college debt burden when his father refused to pay, and he has yet to pursue a career.

Also troubling is that the surge in pre-college loan’s popularity coincides with a rise in the cost of private school’s tuition, Andriotis says. The average cost is up nearly $20,000 per year. “