College Funds?

zombiemommy

With Christmas coming, my grandparents and parents want to add money to a college fund for the boys. Does anyone have one? Know of a good program?

bmv1980

I'm interested to hear responses. My parents just set up bank accounts for the grandkids.

Scooby2358

Disclaimer: I'm not a professional, so please check with your financial advisor/accountant/guru/whatever. If any of you ladies are actual financial professionals, I'd love to hear your take!

Try a state 529 plan. You don't have to go with the one offered in your state, though some states have a tax advantage if you do (ours does not). You can compare plans at savingforcollege.com. We live in Mass but chose the Iowa plan for DD. They're easy to set up and you can transfer funds directly into them. Just look out for high fees.

Also, I believe (not sure) that eventually when your oldest kid is applying to college, the college can look at *all* 529 plans, including your younger kids', when computing aid. For that reason some people choose to put funds into their own retirement accounts, which can be withdrawn for educational purposes but can't be used for computing aid. Everyone's situation is different. However, we decided that for the small gifts DD would receive from grandparents, the 529 plan was the way to go.

luvmyducks

We have a savings account in her name with me as a co-owner or the account at our credit union.  And we have that linked to a 529 account and whenever she gets money in her savings account, we transfer it to her 529 account (we match what everyone puts in as well).  Each state's 529 is a little different.  We consulted with a financial advisor at the credit union to decide which option was best.

julesjb

We set up a MA 529 for gifts and small increments we can put in until we can put in it monthly. We met with a planner and set up what worked best...it was really informative