Overview

• More than a quarter of federal borrowers halted repayment in the third quarter of 2025, according to Mark Kantrowitz’s analysis.
• Forbearance swelled to 10.3 million borrowers from 2.9 million a year earlier, while total deferments reached 3.4 million with economic hardship cases doubling to 100,000 and unemployment deferments rising to 180,000.
• The 8th Circuit’s ruling striking down the SAVE plan helped drive the shift to pauses as interest resumed for those on the plan and many borrowers reported difficulty moving to alternative options.
• The Education Department reported a backlog of over 1.3 million income‑driven repayment applications as of July, slowing access to lower payments.
• Typical borrowers in general forbearance can see about $219 in monthly interest charges, and TransUnion projected roughly 3 million defaults by August with possible wage garnishment of up to 15%.