Debt Collective buys $10 million in student loan debt from Morehouse College for $125,000 and cancels it

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

Agroup of student loan activists against sometimes crippling bills for education made a lot of students happy recently when they bought off millions of dollars in student loan debt, then requested permission to cancel, or pay off the balances on accounts.

The group known as the Debt Collective said it worked with another organization called Rolling Jubilee Fund to buy off almost $10 million in debt from Atlanta's Morehouse College, striking a deal to buy it off for $125,000.

The group then requested final permission to have balances of at least 2,777 accounts eliminated, and effectively considered paid in full.

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Braxton Brewington, a spokesperson for the Debt Collective said, “Our nation is defaulting on the promise of education."

He said U.S. students face "crushing amounts of student debt."

After the debt from nearly 3,000 accounts connected to Atlanta's historically Black Morehouse University was transferred to the Jubilee Fund to be settled up, the financial burden eliminated came out to $9,707,827.67.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/personalfinance/student-debt-activists-buy-off-millions-in-loans-then-cancel-them/ar-AA1iQZTg

[Bev54]

1. That is awesome!

[Pisces]

2. I wonder why Biden can't set up something like this. Buy off debt for pennies on the dollar and

Wipe it off as paid in full. Genius maneuvering!!!

[brush]

4. Wish it could be done. It would have a near impossible time...

getting through Congress though. Executive orders can't fund anything by themselves.

[Think. Again.]

5. A serious question....

...doesn't the Executive Branch have access to any discretionary funds?

I keep hearing how Biden's hands are tied by Congress' pursestrings with so many projects that he would like to accomplish, but surely there must be some legitimate way he can do certain things without having to go through the drawn out process of having his each request debated, then voted on, by Congress?

[Pisces]

7. This is definitely gaming the system. I don't see why more billionaires can't help with this

Situation. 10 million vs 160k? They could buy all delinquent debt and wipe it off and then find a way to write off the loss.

A new government student loan system has to be set up like a HELOC where students can add new loan amounts to one line of credit while they are students so they don’t have multiple loans outstanding. Any new scholarships can be applied directly to loan balance before interest starts accruing so that the balance goes down. We need to restructure the entire process.

[melm00se]

3. Not enough information

to see if this is something that can be replicated.

My gut says that these loans were not federally guaranteed loans but rather private loans that Morehouse made and held the debt which would not be a normal debt instrument.

[Think. Again.]

6. Debts that go into default...

...are routinely sold off for pennies on the dollar to debt collectors who are willing to use very aggressive practices in the hope of collecting a few that will cover the cost of the many they have bought.

I don't know if these student debts were in that category though.