How Student Debt Tripled In 8 Years, And Why It's Becoming A Growing Economic Problem

US student loan debt has soared to $966 billion, nearly tripling from 2004 to 2012, according to new data from the New York Federal Reserve.

The Fed offers five reasons to explain this trend:

• More people attend college and graduate school
• Parents take out student loans for their children
• Students stay longer in college and more often attend graduate school
• Lower repayment rates as borrowers delay payments through deferments and forbearances
• Discharging student debt is very difficult and the balance stays with the borrower

Meanwhile, 17 percent of borrowers are now late on their debt payments. This is up from 10 percent in 2004.

What follows is the Fed's presentation showing the incredible rise of student debt and how it is quickly becoming a big problem.