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The United States Senate on Wednesday failed to reverse the recent doubling of interest rates to 6.8 percent on millions of new federally subsidized student loans.
What Is The Interest Rate On A Student Loan
While the measure to return the interest rate to the lower level of 3.4 percent on Stafford Loans actually got a 51-49 vote, the arcane procedures of the “world’s largest advisory body” require at least 60 votes to pass. In the US Senate, majority rule is clearly an outdated idea.
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The current national student loan debt stands at $1 trillion. The failed vote means millions of new students will pile up more in the coming years because of the indecision of politicians in Washington.
Interest rates on new Stafford loans awarded to students from moderate-to-low-income families doubled on July 1. An estimated 7 million students are affected — or about 25 percent of all new federal student loans made this year.
The interest rate hike means the average student borrower will pay about $1,000 more over the life of the loan and up to $4,000 more in interest if they take out the maximum loan amounts during their four-year college career.
Not a lot for the many millionaires in the Senate, but a lot for a college graduate with few job prospects in a market where unemployment is now 7.6 percent.
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The 6.8 percent increase in interest rates on student loans makes a significant difference in the interest borrowers will pay over the life of their student loans. This interest reduces their savings and other resources.
Interest rates on federal student loan consolidations, which allow borrowers to consolidate all their student loans into one package and are based on the average of all interest rates combined, may also increase for borrowers affected by the Stafford Loan increase .
It is estimated that the class of 2013 will graduate with more than $35,000 in student loans. This means they will have less funds to save, invest in the housing and auto industries, and retire, which is sure to hamper the nation’s economic growth in the coming years.
Critics say the Senate doesn’t just want to fix the immediate problem; he wants to find a permanent solution to the entire nation’s skyrocketing student loan issue.
How To Calculate Student Loan Interest
Senators debated a bill that would completely overhaul the student loan interest rate methodology, tying interest rates to ten-year Treasury bills, plus a few points.
There are two potential problems with this approach: The first is that as interest rates on Treasury bills rise, so will interest rates on student loans. Those variable rates would have no cap, under proposed legislation introduced by Sens. Joe Manchin, D–W.Va. and Richard Burr, R-N.C.
While they may be low for the first few years (3.66 percent for all student loans for the upcoming academic year), interest rates can explode, possibly surpassing even the current rate of 6.8 percent. So much for helping existing middle school and high school students.
The second and perhaps bigger problem is that no matter what legislation the Senate eventually passes (if it can overcome its partisanship and the 60-vote rule), it will likely never become law because the House of Representatives has its own ideas on how to rework the student loan equation, and therein lies the problem.
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There is very little affability between the two sides of the Capitol — whatever passes in the Republican House these days seems to die in the Democratic Senate and vice versa.
In a way, it’s admirable that some senators want to fix the bigger flaws in the current system instead of applying a temporary Band-Aid, and they say simply reversing the doubling of interest rates in one year is just that.
But in a strange disconnect, they don’t seem to accept the fact that because Congress is so paralyzed and stuck in gridlock, they’ll never find their perfect solution. They can have all the talk and debate they want, but it’s all just good show that won’t bring about much change.
Despite bills proposed by other lawmakers, the doubling of student loan interest rates is destined to remain in place, hurting the very people our lawmakers claim to be so interested in helping — those 7 million students next school year.
How Much Is The Student Loan Interest Rate?
Once again Congress spoke but could not find the wisdom and balance to proceed. Students and their families will pay the price for his incompetence.
Bill “No Pay” Fay has lived a meager financial existence throughout his life. He began writing/praising it in 2012, helping birth the site’s original “Frugal Man.” Before that, he spent more than 30 years covering the high-profile world of college finance and professional sports for major publications including the Associated Press, the New York Times and Sports Illustrated. His interest in the sport has waned, but he is as passionate as ever about not reaching for his wallet. You can get the bill at [email protected]. Home / Paying for College / Financial Aid / Variable or Fixed Rate International Student Loan – Which Should I Choose?
If you are looking for an international student loan to study in the US, one of your first considerations is whether to get a fixed or variable rate student loan. But there’s a lot of confusion about the difference between these two types of student loans and what that means in terms of future payments and financial risk.
The good news is you’re covered – read on for everything you need to know!
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Fixed rate loans are exactly what they say they are – fixed, meaning your rate never goes up! A fixed interest rate, for example, will simply be quoted as “12%” or “10.5%”.
Variable interest rates, also known as floating or adjustable interest rates, change based on market fluctuations. They are defined by two components:
The benchmark for variable interest rates on student loans was LIBOR, or to give it its full name, the London Interbank Offered Rate. This has now been largely replaced, at least in the United States, by the SOFR (Guaranteed Overnight Funding Rate).
A variable interest rate is quoted with a benchmark and a spread, e.g. “SOFR + 8%”. The loan agreement will also specify how often your interest rate will be adjusted (eg every month or every quarter, based on changes in the main reference interest rate).
Student Loan Interest Rates: Your Guide To Understanding The Numbers
The short answer is that it depends on your risk tolerance. The initial interest rate on variable rate student loans is usually lower than that on fixed rates, but if and when market interest rates rise, the interest rates on these loans can surpass fixed rates.
However, there is one major advantage to variable rate student loans: If market interest rates remain low, you may end up paying less for an variable rate loan than for a fixed rate loan.
Of course, if the benchmark goes high enough, you’ll end up paying significantly more. And if you’re lucky and it lands, you’ll pay even less than the introductory price.
No one can say for sure whether the SOFR or other benchmark rates will rise. However, Kiplinger’s interest rate forecast states that “…expectations for the future path of interest rates…point to a gradually increasing trend over the next two to three years.” Historically, LIBOR rates have been very volatile, as in 1989 have risen to nearly 11%.
Interest Sensitive Liabilities: Understanding Student Loan Interest Rates
Let’s say you borrowed $30,000 and pay off the principal and interest on the student loan over a 10-year period, with payments to be made monthly at a 12% fixed interest rate.
Using a student loan repayment calculator or a simple Excel formula, you can calculate that your monthly payment will be $430.31 (assuming interest is calculated on a monthly basis, not a daily basis). You will pay the same amount every month for ten years. The only thing that will change is the relative share of each payment that is for interest or principal. At the beginning of your loan, a higher percentage of the payment goes to interest, and in later periods more of that payment goes to repaying the principal.
In the first month, for example, you still owe $30,000, so the interest payment will be $300. You calculate this by multiplying the amount owed by the quotient of the annual interest rate divided by the number of payment periods in a year. So, since the payments are made monthly and there are 12 months in the year, the monthly interest paid in the first month is $30,000 x (.12/12) = $300. The difference between your payment of $430.31 and