Parents Can Be At Risk When Filling A Federal Student Aid Gap

Parents who take out loans to help their children pay growing student tuitions may end up in financial straits themselves, with debts growing quickly with each student.If parents don’t plan for college expenses, they can face decreased disposable income and having to skimp on retirement savings in order to pay home mortgages and student loan debts, financial experts said.“As parents pay for their house and pay, or help pay, for their kid’s college, if they sign loans for one or two or however many kids, it could delay their retirement,” said Carol Jensen, author of “College Financial Aid: Highlighting the Small Print of Student Loans.”Families often turn to private loans that parents cosign or to federal parent PLUS loans taken out in a parent’s name when grants, scholarships and federal student loans aren’t enough to cover college costs.“Parents are the only ones left to pick up the tab.