. >> reporter: jamie winterbottom shares a tiny studio with his fiancee in new york city. >> my studentn was actually more in total in payment of $2,000 a month. i'm sitting about $150,000 in student loans. >> reporter: jamie is one of 40 million americans paying off student loans. the u.s. government profits handsomely from those loans. it charges all borrowers the same interest rate. federal data shows it will earn $66 billion in loans issued between 2007 and 2012. and the private sector wants a piece of that growing money pie. unlike mortgages or auto loans, student debt is not backed by an asset so if for example you default on your mortgage, a lender can foreclose, if you stop paying your auto loan, a bank can repossess, but if you fail to meet your student debt obligations, your knowledge, your skills, cannot be taken away. david cline is ceo and cofounder of common fund. the company raised $100 million from investors anxious to meet the demand for student debt refinancing. the secret is the screening process for applicants. >> we'll take into consideration somebody's credit histo

. >> jamie winterbottom shares a tiny studio apartment with his fiancee in new york city. >> my student loan is more in total i'm paying about $2,000 a month. i'm standing at about $150,000 in student loans. >> he took on that amount of debt while earning an mba at new york university. presidential candidates are eager to get their votes in 2016. >> it just makes sense. if you can refinance your mortgage or your car loan you should be able to refinance your student loan, too. >> somebody today can take out an auto loan with a 1 or 2% interest rate but millions of college graduates are stick with interest rates of 5, 6, 7% and sometimes they're stuck with that debt for decades. >> so here's the thing to keep in mind. unlike mortgages or auto loans, student debt is not backed by an asset. if for example you stop paying your mortgage, your home can be repossessed, or your car can be repossessed. but your college degrees cannot be taken away. which means the government owns about 90% of student debt. dozens of lenders already help jamie get lower interest rates. federal government charges o