The Student Loan Repayment Bomb

Repayments will likely threaten consumer spending and housing markets. Could they also be a catalyst for weaker job markets and a recession?

Regulators, policymakers, and analysts alike have been warning about outstanding student debt levels for years. Years before the pandemic, Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell had noted that student debt might restrict a borrower’s ability to start a business, finance a home purchase, or participate fully in the economy. In 2018, for instance, when stude…