According to a new report by the US Federal Reserve increased student debt has prevented home ownership by younger Americans.

Owning a home for people ages 24 to 32 fell to 36% in the past 5 years. The Federal Reserve says that 1/5 of the decline was directly linked to student loans. About 400,000 borrowers would have purchased a home if they would have qualified however, high numbers of student loans detracted from their ability to qualify for mortgages or to even save for a down payment.

Collectively, American student debt is now at an amazing $1.5 trillion, which is even more than credit card debt and car loans combined. So it should come as no surprise that this burden makes it harder to buy a home, and that is also hurting the housing market.

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