Living with his family isn’t something Kevin Furst envisioned eight years after graduating from Philadelphia University with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design communication.

Not only did Furst believe that the majority of his post-graduate earnings would be earmarked toward his own home and expenses, he also counted on completing his long-time goal of joining the Peace Corps.

“I am reaching out to the community in hopes that someone could help me figure some things out regarding my student loans. I have reached out to lawyers and financial planners but cannot afford their services at the moment and I need help figuring out my options for tackling my debt and dealing with loan default,” said Furst, an East Stroudsburg resident who also completed a minor in marketing while taking photography classes before he graduated in 2008.

But, like many millennials, instead of living the American dream, Furst is mired in debt to the U.S. government and, most of all, to private student loan lenders.

“When I left school my student loans totaled $63,000 and now they have skyrocketed to over $140,000 thanks to the high interest rates that I’m paying,” he said.

To make matters worse, Furst said the paycheck he earns in his marketing and social media job at Shawnee Mountain Ski Area is swallowed up by the approximately $1,500 a month he pays for his private student loans.

He’s also on the hook for $52 per month for a federal student loan.

Dreams deferred

“There’s no such thing as playing catch-up,” he said. “Each month, the late balance rolls over and I fall further and further behind.”

What’s more, the student loan debt has kept him from serving communities in need by volunteering with the Peace Corps, Furst said.

While the Peace Corps program has several benefits that can assist student loan borrowers, those with private student loans aren’t eligible for as many benefits as those with federal student loans.

“That’s been a dream of mine, to serve in the Peace Corps, but that can’t happen because of the private student loans that I have and I just don’t know what to do,” Furst said.

Once an enthusiastic college student optimistic about a bright future because of earning a coveted degree, Furst has fallen victim to the growing cost of college and what’s reportedly a $1.3 trillion industry that has 42 million Americans paying the bill.

Thirty years ago, the federal government opened the student loan operation to private companies and banks, which seized on the flow of federal loan dollars, the financial website, PJmedia.com, reported.

The industry has a huge amount of lobbying power, and as a result, student loans can no longer be discharged in bankruptcy, with the exception of only a few rare cases.

Private student loans, unlike federal student loans, do not come with borrower protections like deferment, forbearance, grace periods and income-based repayment options.

“Right now I’m between paying $300 to $400 a week toward my student loan and, as I’m paying that, it’s not leaving much left over for health insurance or anything else,” Furst said.

“My federal loans are the ones that I’ve been able to make a bigger dent in just because of the lower interest rate. The federal interest is between 3.5 percent and 4.9 percent and those are down to a manageable level. But, the private loans that I have range between $125 and my largest monthly payment of $467,” Furst said.

He’s also been in regular contact with American Education Services, a leading student aid organization that was established by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency to guarantee and service a variety of Federal Family Education Loan Program and private student loan products.

“I have contacted American Education Services weekly in hopes that someone would help lower my interest, lower payments or assist in loan consolidation but they told me that there are no options for private loans and to just keep paying them,” Furst said

“As I became further and further behind in payments the phone calls from debt collectors grew. The only options were to pay the monthly installment in full or pay nothing and be listed as ‘unwilling to pay.’ I was willing to pay; I just could not afford the full $1,500 so they did not accept any money from me,” he said.

He added that, “I received a letter last week in the mail saying I defaulted on a loan and the entire balance and interest would be due in 30 days.”

The former East Stroudsburg High School South student isn’t alone.

The numbers

According to LendEDU, a student loan provider and refinancing marketplace, the class of 2016 is in worse shape than Furst’s 2008 class and this year’s graduates are listed as the most indebted class in history.

When breaking down student debt by state, LendEDU found that Pennsylvania ranked fourth this year with 70 percent of graduates loaded down by debt. The average debt per borrower in the state is $34,538.

A recent Forbes Magazine report that looked into a Citizens Bank survey noted that when it comes to student loans, millennials are adopting an “out of sight, out of mind” attitude.

Approximately 45 percent of survey respondents said they didn’t know what percentage of their salary went to paying off their loans while 37 percent were unaware of the interest rate on their loan.

While 15 percent said they weren’t aware of how much they owe, 44 percent claimed to not fully understand the difference between federal and private loans.

Finally, the Citizens Bank survey revealed that millennials were fuzzy when it came to plans to pay off their loans.

Of those who had a number in mind, 11 years was the average length of time that respondents estimated it would take them to dig out of debt while 59 percent reported that they didn’t know how long it would take them to be debt free.

Furst admitted that he wasn’t exactly sure what he was getting in when in 2005 he took out his first loan and then a year later when he borrowed again.

“The loan that was disbursed in 2006 originally was $26,000 and now it’s $38,000,” he said.

“My other loan that was disbursed in 2005 was $27,000 and now it’s $43,000. It is a frustrating battle and it’s upsetting knowing where you should be and you can’t really get there.”

Searching for hope

Although there has been much talk about student loan reform on the federal and state level, Furst has little hope that he’ll ever be debt free.

“Sen. Elizabeth Warren has had some good proposals that she’s been trying to get through that have focused on private banks and service providers and lowering interest rates, but not much else,” he said.

“I’m a photographer as well and I’ve been trying to go out and sell my photos but that’s been hard too because of my limited budget. I can’t really do much and I am in an absolute panic and have no idea where to go or what to do,” Furst said.

“I am currently looking for another part-time job to hopefully get ahead but need someone to guide me in the right direction.”