February
CBA’s Comyn says student debt tweak helps but housing supply is key
The bank CEO was echoed by HECS architect Bruce Chapman, who said Jim Chalmers’ changes made sense but fixing home affordability required more residences.
Chalmers instructs banks to loosen home loan rules for HECS debts
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has instructed the prudential regulator to relax how HECS is treated when banks conduct mortgage serviceability tests.
$80,000 debt is only part of cost crisis hitting students hard
Jasmine O’Brien is in the second of a five-year degree, holds down two jobs and worries about what her student debt will be when she finally graduates.
December 2024
HECS architect wants student debt ignored when assessing home loans
Bruce Chapman, who created the income-contingent loan system for students, has hit out at the political fiddling the system has faced.
November 2024
‘I’m not going to say no to a nice salary’: outgoing Melbourne Uni boss
Duncan Maskell rejects criticism of million-dollar pay packets for vice chancellors, hits back at claims there are too many overseas students, and insists a university education should be free.
These three scenarios show how HECS debt hits your borrowing capacity
Instead of paying his student loan down faster with extra repayments, this 26-year-old chose to divert his savings to build a house deposit. It paid off.
Why do arts students pay more than medical students?
Australia’s university sector will mark an expensive milestone with the $50,000 arts degree, but the changes might not be helping students or the economy.
Greens plan to cancel student debt unfair to poor, says HECS architect
In what looks like an act of one-upmanship, the Greens will promise to cancel all student debt, not just 20 per cent like Labor. Experts say the idea stinks.
$16b uni student debt fix helps men more than women
Those paying tertiary fees will have to wait until at least 2027 for the overhaul, as analysis shows it will assist male graduates erase their liability sooner.
Cheaper arts degrees after Labor ‘unscrambles’ uni fees
The Albanese government is poised to unveil permanent measures to lower student debt, on top of the one-off $16 billion reduction.
Why Australia’s happiest students have the highest HECS debt
There is a powerful correlation between size and satisfaction when it comes to universities.
PM’s plan to spend Labor’s way out of trouble
Over the weekend we saw the emergence of a plan, or at least the latest plan, to try to shift the government out of its torpor.
HECS architect says Labor loan cut leaves the real problems unresolved
The Albanese government wants to cut student debts as it frets about younger voters turning to the Greens. Economists say the $16b loan forgiveness will favour high earners.
Labor’s uni debt election bribe trashes fairness
The principle of ensuring fairness all-round will be trashed by handing out a 20 per cent debt cut regardless of income. It is middle-class welfare on steroids.
Labor’s mimicking of Biden on uni debt is inequitable and indefensible
Not satisfied with crippling Australia’s higher education system with its self-destructive student caps, the government simply couldn’t resist doubling down.
PM chases young voters with pledge to wipe $16b from student debt
Every student will have their debt cut by 20 per cent at a cost to the budget of $16 billion, as Labor escalates its pitch to young voters.
Labor seeks political reset through HECS debt tweak
Younger Australians struggling with cost-of-living pain will be given freedom to earn more before they have to repay university loans.
October 2024
NAB calls for lower home loan buffer to help first-time buyers
In a submission to the Senate inquiry, NAB says dropping HECS-HELP debt from serviceability calculations for first home buyers would boost borrowing capacity.
September 2024
Parents’ eye-watering education bills don’t end with school
Helping kids get started in life has arguably never been more expensive. Plan and save early, experts say. We’ve also found the most generous scholarships available.
$30k for honours degree makes switching careers an expensive choice
Older generations are being lumbered with more student debt and for longer as students try to negotiate an irrational and unfair system.