On Wednesday, July 31, 2013, the U.S. House gave final passage to a compromised bill for student loan interest rates. The president signed it into law on August 9, 2013.
For new student loans made since July 1, 2013, the new rates for this year will be 3.86% fixed for undergraduate Direct subsidized and unsubsidized loans, 5.41% fixed for Graduate Direct unsubsidized loans and 6.41% fixed for Direct PLUS loans. This is significantly less than borrowers would be paying if a deal hadn’t been brokered.
On August 9, President Obama signed into law the student loan deal that lowers rates on new federal student loans. There’s still more work to be done to make college more accessible and affordable for students, but it’s a start.
Even with today’s high cost of college, it’s still possible to pay for school without taking out student loans. This article offers some great tips and advice for reducing college costs, from taking college classes while you’re still in high school to actively searching for scholarships all through college. Because of her diligence, the author was […]
Inside Higher Education published a great piece on understanding “financial aid speak” from college financial aid offices. To the average parent, it can feel like college financial aid representatives are speaking a whole different language.
On Wednesday, July 31, 2013, the U.S. House of Representatives gave final passage to a compromised bill for student loan interest rates and the president is expected to sign. For new student loans made since July 1, 2013, the new rates for this year will be: 3.86 percent for undergraduate Stafford subsidized and unsubsidized loans […]
You thought you were doing the right thing by investing in a 529 plan to save for your child’s college. But what if your student receives a scholarship that covers most, if not all, of his or her college expenses?
As the weak economy continues to impact how Americans spend their money, parents are putting less toward their children’s college education than in previous years. Parents put an average of $5,727 from their income and savings toward each child’s college costs in the 2012-2013 academic year, down more than a third from $8,752 in 2009-2010.
Many prospective and current college students don’t realize that their income and assets are taken into account when they apply for financial aid, just like that of their parents. So should students be worried about earning too much money and receiving less financial aid if they have a job?
Today, the Senate failed once again to implement a one-year, retroactive fix that would keep rates at 3.4 percent on federal subsidized Stafford loans made from July 1, 2013, to June 30, 2014. Lawmakers have been debating various proposals to lower student rates but have neglected to come to an agreement.
This commentary from the NY Post sums up the real way Congress has failed students perfectly. The problem is not just that Congress has hurt students by failing to keep student loan interest rates from doubling to 6.8%. It’s that they have done nothing to prevent college costs from skyrocketing. The real problem: college affordability […]