How the Slowing Economy is Affecting College Access Loan

US college students appear to be the latest victims as the economy slows and money for borrowing dries up. American students who need a college access loan to pay their way through college, are starting to have a tough time accessing funds. Increasing numbers of public and private lenders are pulling out of offering student loans, affected by the credit squeeze and the declining profit of federal government backed loans for education.

There are reports of a state agency that has suspended a loans program that serves college students. This will affect 100 universities and colleges and there are fears that other agencies and colleges may follow the same path. The reason given was the disruption of capital markets.

Student loans are usually supported by some of the major banks, including Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Citibank, but they have stopped supporting the normally low-risk securities that student loans traditionally backed. Financial experts are predicting that student loans will also become more expensive, as well as being harder to access.

The major source of student loans is a federal government program in which it backs loans to means-tested students. The federal government loans are often used for tuition fees and then a further private loan is usually needed to cover general expenses. It is these private loans which will become more difficult to obtain. As yet, there is no evidence to suggest that lenders are failing to support their obligations to the federal loans.

The effect of the credit squeeze will affect those families with poor credit ratings and lower incomes. The people who have been caught up in the mortgage crisis may have children studying at college, who will no longer be able to access student loans because of their parents' credit score.

It has been estimated that about 100,000 students will not qualify for private or government loans this year due to poor credit. Add to this the decreasing number of companies providing student loans, and there will be problems for many college students. The smart parents and students will start their search for student loans early to ensure that financial aid is available for their higher education.