<p>We were really not wanting to borrow for our daughter's freshman year. However, due to some unforseen circumstances we are probably going to have to borrow around $5k for next year.</p>
<p>The PLUS loans are very expensive rates and I noticed that several companies like Wells Fargo and BOA have lower interest rates for parents. Anyone have experience with these? We don't want the loans to be in dd's name, but ours.</p>
<p>The way it usually works is that the educational loans have to be in the student’s name with a parental co signer, though there may also be some for parent’s only out there. It’s a free market and what one can find, good for you. The PLUS rates are very expensive. The only reason to take them is that they are easy to do in the privacy of your home and the repayment terms are flexible. You don’t have to start paying on them until 6 months after your student graduates though the very high interest starts accruing right away. Also there is a life insurance component to the loans in that if either you or your student should pass away, the loans are forgiven. Not so with most of these student loans. </p>
<p>But do check. If you have private access to borrowing with better terms, by all means go to it.</p>
<p>If I had to borrow, I would do a home equity loan. We were offered loan with about 3.24% rate recent.</p>
<p>Have you asked at your own bank or credit union? They may have a loan product that will serve your needs more effectively.</p>
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You start paying almost right away. I think we started paying when the second semester funds were disbursed.</p>
<p>See a thread in this forum titled “private loan rates” from summer 2011. My post #2 in that thread has links to other earlier threads on this issue. we got loans at 3.25% from Wells Fargo in Fall2011 and January 2012. we’ve now paid off our higher rate loans from them (at 4.75 and 5.75) Keeping the 3.25 ones for now - that’s lower than the <em>real</em> rate of inflation (not the b.s. rates the govt gives us), especially when you factor in the student loan interest deduction.</p>