Student Debt Still Weighing Down Gen X

When many think of the student debt crisis, they picture young recent graduates working in the service industry and unable to secure a job in the field they paid for a pricy degree in.

However, the numbers are in—and it's not the younger generations struggling the most to pay back their student loans. Instead, Gen X and Baby Boomers are behind on their student loans more than any other age group, recent New York Fed data found.

Across the country, student loan debt stands at $1.6 trillion as of last quarter, and a hefty portion of that is held by the generations who went to school before university costs tripled and inflation skyrocketed.

According to Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the state of Tennessee, the assumption that Gen X could avoid the student loan crisis because of cheaper costs is wrong.

"That fails to take into account that many in this age group have returned to school countless times over the years to earn higher degrees and in turn racked up significant amounts of debt," Beene told Newsweek.

Gen X is also known as the sandwich generation, and their financial obligations are often larger than either the Baby Boomers before them or the millennials after them. Gen X routinely juggles paying off mortgages, helping their children with college and young adulthood as well as caring for elderly parents who also might require financial support.

"It doesn't come as a surprise to me that older Americans are struggling the most with their student debt," Michael Lux, the founder of the Student Loan Sherpa, told Newsweek.

Older Americans also saw the Federal Family Education Loan program terminated in 2010. Instead of getting out of their debt, though, they were stuck with complicated loans and see some of the fewest repayment options, Lux said.

Enrolling in an income-driven repayment plan can also entail "jumping through many hoops," he said.

"Temporary programs have come and gone. Add in the well-documented struggles of servicers tasked with helping borrowers navigate repayment, and you have a recipe for confusion and falling behind," Lux said. "For new graduates, repayment is by no means simple, but it is far less complicated than what most borrowers older than 50 face."

And as Gen X and Baby Boomers face retirement, the consequences of their high student debt could wreak havoc on their lives.

"If you're saddled with student debt, not to mention loans for a home, car, or credit card, it could make the reality of retirement much further away than what your age suggests," Beene said.

The average American with credit card debt also had $7,932 in unpaid credit card bills last year, a New York Life's Wealth Watch Survey found, a sharp climb from $6,321 the year before.

In this specific debt field, Gen X was also doing worse than other generations, owing an average of $9,254 and contributing $312 each month. Baby Boomers weren't much better, owing $8,288 and contributing $388 each month.

Gen Z and millennials, in comparison, owed an average of just $5,337 and $7,280 respectively.

When it comes specifically to student debt though, the larger system may very well be at fault for Gen X, Boomers and others' difficulties in paying back their loans, Fred Amrein, the CEO and founder of PayForED, said.

"The entire college admission process is built on access and not affordability," Amrein told Newsweek. "It is the largest financial borrowing decision that people make without a third party approval."

Both Parent PLUS and Grad Plus plans allow parents or graduate students to borrow up to the cost of attendance with no formal loan underwriting and a minimal credit score. For many borrowers, this doesn't set them up for success.

"It is a highly emotional decision for parents," Amrein said, adding that colleges only provide financial information for one year at a time.

And as many Americans begin to have children later in life, student loans are more likely to derail your retirement plans, a situation Gen X is feeling acutely right now.

"There is no transparency to the final cost and amount of debt for both the student and parent to see," Amrein said. "They cannot project what the monthly payment will be at graduation."

Are you struggling to repay your student loans? Newsweek wants to hear from you. Contact us at personalfinance@newsweek.com.