Parents struggle to finance kids' college

NEW YORK, April 12 (UPI) -- U.S. parents who pay for their children's college educations are facing new challenges this year as strained lenders increase selectivity, experts say.

Legislators are attempting to avoid a major crisis by securing "lenders of the last resort" to fill in for companies that have checked out of government lending programs, The New York Times reported.

"I would say there is widespread belief that we will have a real problem, that the lender of last resort or some other solution will have to be used this year," U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings said.

Federal loan programs aren't the only troubled resource, as parent's savings accounts and mortgages are also increasingly strained this year, the Times reported.

In an effort to make sure student loans will be available, Spellings met Friday with state agency and nonprofit organizations that guarantee such lending. The meeting reportedly focused on figuring out how the guarantors would step in and provide loans in an emergency situation.