. After he graduates , Hahn estimates it will take him anywhere from five to seven years to repay about $ 30,000 he will have borrowed by then . `` Money is n't cheap , '' said Hahn , who transferred to Georgia State University in Atlanta from the University of Connecticut last year because the tuition was less expensive . `` The process is time-consuming , and there 's also the stress of having to liquidate my investments and wonder where I 'm going to find money . '' About 8 percent of student borrowers rely on private loans , which tend to be costlier and stricter than federal loans , said Robert Shierman , executive director of the Institute for College Access and Success . In doing so , Hahn and others like him are getting a crash course in market volatility and its effects on the consumer 's ability to find money . Watch how the current economic troubles affect consumers '' MyRichUncle.com is the most recent lender to suspend its private student loan program , joining the ranks of major financial institutions like Wachovia and Bank of America and companies specializing in student loans such as
ATLANTA , Georgia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Eric Hahn thought his financial situation was set after he was approved for a private student loan with an 8 percent interest rate to supplement his federal education loans . Eric Hahn , 21 , estimates he will be in debt for the next five to seven years for his undergraduate tuition . Just a few weeks later , Hahn , 21 , was forced to cash in his savings and investments so he could make his rent and tuition after finding out that the lender , MyRichUncle.com , had suspended its private student loan program . `` Due to continued disruptions in the capital markets , combined with the continued demand we have experienced this year , we are reaching funding capacity limits , '' a message on his cell phone said , mimicking a statement on the company 's Web site . The sudden news left Hahn , a senior-year finance major , scrambling to find additional funding after maxing out his borrowing options from the federal government . Eventually , the country 's leading student loan provider , Sallie Mae , approved him for a private loan at 12 percent