<p>"To a certain extent, the more that the government is willing to lend, the more that the colleges will charge. So addressing student loan interest rates doesn’t really solve the problem – in a way, it may simply encourage students to borrow more, in the same way that lower mortgage rates empowers home buyers to sign to buy more house for the same monthly payment. "</p>
<p>This is why I didn;t join the applause for Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s call for lower interest rates on student loans. If you make something cheaper, people will “buy” more of it. But students (and parents) don’t really need more college debt. They need more affordable college. If I have zero money in the bank and a new iPhone costs $400, I can’t buy it. If I get a new credit card in the mail, with a $400 limit, the iPhone didn’t become more affordable, even if now I feel like I can “buy” it.</p>