'It's going to hurt': How a surging student-loan payment is reshaping a family's future
The Sprague family is facing significant financial strain due to a 150% increase in their monthly student-loan payments. This surge follows the elimination of the Biden-era SAVE repayment plan under new administration policies.
Why it matters
It highlights the real-world impact of shifting federal student loan policies on middle-class household budgets and long-term financial stability.
The Sprague family is determining the sacrifices they need to make to navigate higher student-loan payments. Alyssa Pointer for BI Jodi and Paul Sprague raised their daughters with a guiding principle: understand the value of a dollar. By elementary school, Evelyn and Olivia were learning about mortgages, car insurance, and basic accounting in the carpool lane. Early one June morning, before Evelyn, 17, and Olivia, 19, left for their summer jobs, Jodi sat them down with news that threw the Spragues' carefully managed budget into question. The student-loan payments the family had budgeted for since 2015 were surging from $404 to $1,014 monthly, starting in September. Jodi Sprague and her daughter, Olivia, are both facing looming student-debt burdens. Alyssa Pointer for BI She and Olivia began to cry.
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