Student loan debt crisis deepens

Federal student-loan debt has the potential of spilling into a “widening default crisis,” that could affect everything from homeownership to forking out for “wifi or that extra sofa,” says Bloomberg. With the cost of borrowing inching up, overall outstanding student-loan obligations have reached $1.5 trillion. More than 10% of student-loan borrowers are 90 days or more delinquent, compared to 1.1% for mortgages and 4% for auto-loans.

• Maine is offering to help students pay off their loans in a bid to retain and attract younger workers. With a median age of 43 — five years older than the rest of the country — the state created the Educational Opportunity Tax Credit program as a way of encouraging students to stay after graduating college, allowing them to subtract their student loan payments from their state income tax.