Student loan repayments put a damper on holiday spending—especially for Gen Z and millennials

By Nadra Nittle

Originally published by The 19th

All Myshelle Bey’s 4-year-old daughter wants for Christmas is a Barbie Dreamhouse. The toy costs around $200, which is cost prohibitive for the single mother from Boston.

“She has had her heart set on it all year,” Bey said. “I'm sitting here determining which bill would I be OK with being behind on to give my child the Christmas that she deserves.”

As it is, paying for basic necessities such as utilities, rent and groceries and managing her daughter’s severe asthma has not been easy for Bey. Then, in October, the 29-year-old had to resume making student loan payments after the pandemic pause ended. Those payments are $150 per month, which add to the financial pressures Bey — who is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in behavioral science — now faces. Her student loans are under $10,000 and stem from her time at another college, which she left without a degree.

With no family members she can turn to for money and the return of student loan payments, Bey is particularly feeling the financial pinch this holiday season, and she’s not alone.