Money in Your Pocket: Biden's Bid to Banish College Junk Fees

NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast

NerdWallet Personal Finance

Business, Education, Investing, How To

4.2 • 665 Ratings

🗓️ 27 March 2024

⏱️ 11 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Neera Tanden, domestic policy advisor to President Biden, discusses the fight against junk fees impacting college students. What hidden “junk fees” are college students facing? How is the Biden Administration addressing fees to make higher education more affordable? Hosts Sean Pyles and Anna Helhoski discuss the Biden Administration's recent efforts to combat junk fees in colleges, from financial products marketed to students like credit cards and bank accounts to textbook costs and unused meal plan dollars. They speak with Neera Tanden, domestic policy advisor to President Biden, about the more than $1 billion annual impact of these fees and the bipartisan support she expects for some of these policies. Then, in this week's Money News roundup, Sean and Anna discuss issues with the new FAFSA, the Federal Reserve's latest stance on interest rates, and continuing surge of home sales. Get a comprehensive overview of the latest developments affecting your finances and gain valuable insights to stay ahead in an ever-changing economic environment, whether you're a student navigating the labyrinth of college fees or a homeowner keeping tabs on market trends. In their conversation, the Nerds discuss: hidden fees, FAFSA troubles, Federal Reserve, interest rates, housing market, college fees, student finances, financial aid, junk fees, textbook costs, student loans, college expenses, student banking, origination fees, meal plans, tuition bills, open-source textbooks, college affordability, financial literacy, student debt, financial aid applications, existing homes, home prices, National Association of Realtors, mortgage rates, economic indicators, market trends, financial decisions, and personal finance. To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email [email protected]. Like what you hear? Please leave us a review and tell a friend. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:23.3	like you sign up for your one dollar a month trial at shopify dot com slash setup welcome to nerd wallets
0:32.9	smart money podcast i'm sean piles and i'm on a Hoski. And this is our weekly money news roundup,
0:38.8	where we break down the latest in the world of finance to help you be smarter with your money.
0:42.4	We'll go deep into a single topic and then leave you with the latest money headlines.
0:46.3	Today, we are turning once again to junk fees, those annoying surprise surcharges that hike up
0:51.6	the cost of what you're already paying for. Things like credit
0:54.3	card late fees, resort fees at hotels, service fees for event ticketing, and seat selection on
0:59.6	airlines. That's right, Sean. The Biden administration has been crusading against hidden junk
1:04.5	fees for more than a year. And earlier this month, the administration announced its latest
1:08.9	actions to alleviate the burden of junk fees,
1:11.4	this time at colleges and in federal student lending.
1:14.6	Biden wants to get rid of the fees college students pay for financial products marketed
1:18.3	to students, like credit cards and bank accounts. He also wants to eliminate textbook fees that
1:23.4	are folded into tuition bills and wants to require colleges to return unused meal plan dollars
1:28.5	to students. And finally, Biden wants to get rid of origination fees included in federal student loans.
1:34.0	Yep. I spoke with Nira Tandon, domestic policy advisor to Biden. Here's what she had to say.
1:38.7	We think it's vital that college is more affordable and not less affordable. We know how expensive college is. But these fees
	...

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