Student loan rates may double

Student loan debt is now one of the Obama Administration's biggest cash cows. The government is poised to pocket a record $51 billion profit from federal student loan borrowers this year, according to a report by the Congressional Budget Office. 

The bell has been rung in the next round in the fight over student loan interest rates, and borrowers could take it on the chin this time. On July 1, if Congress does nothing, the interest rate on federal subsidized Stafford student loans will double from 3.4% to 6.8%.  “It’s not the end of the economy as we know it,” says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of student-lending websites Fastweb.com and FinAid.org. He’s right, but that doesn’t mean it won’t really stink, especially for the poorest college students. Advocacy group U.S.

The bell has been rung in the next round in the fight over student loan interest rates, and borrowers could take it on the chin this time. On July 1, if Congress does nothing, the interest rate on federal subsidized Stafford student loans will double from 3.4% to 6.8%.  “It’s not the end of the economy as we know it,” says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of student-lending websites Fastweb.com and FinAid.org. He’s right, but that doesn’t mean it won’t really stink, especially for the poorest college students. Advocacy group U.S.

So you have student loans and can't wait to get them paid off? Join the club! There are millions of people across the U.S. who are in that very position right now.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) wasted no time going to bat for college students last week, introducing a bill –– her first as Senator –– that would let students take out federal student loans at the same dirt cheap interest rates as big banks. 

Congress is expected to vote Friday to extend low 3.4% interest rates on federally subsidized student loans for another year, barely beating a July 1 deadline when the rates would double.

By Zvi Bar:On June 29, Congress sidestepped a doubling of interest rates for new federal student loans. Under the bipartisan compromise, interest rates on new Stafford loans, which are subsidized by the federal government, will be 3.4 percent, which is where they were. The rates were set to double in July. This extension should be positive news for the industries that service colleges and universities, including those that manage student housing options, such as student housing REITs.