Here is the parent plus loan thread.
<p>Found a really good, kind of disturbing piece about Parent PLUS loans, which are the mainstay of financial aid financing for many of the conservatory schools we're all targeting. (Boston Conservatory is #4 in terms of Parent PLUS burdens, NYU is #11.) </p>
<p>Some things to consider: the rate is 7.9% (home equity is under 4%), obligations cannot be discharged in bankruptcy and even your social security benefits can be garnished to recover defaults. It's a truly terrible deal for parents -- and also probably dangerous for the economy as a whole. (There is no income check to qualify, so people who make, say, less than $50,000 are being encouraged to borrow up to a quarter of a million...how do we think that's going to end?) </p>
<p>Anyway, here's a link: The</a> Parent Loan Trap - Students - The Chronicle of Higher Education </p>
I’m going to be very frank. OOS colleges can be very costly. If you are planning to fund undergraduate school with loans, that can be a very slippery slope. You don’t know what the future will bring as you even said.