S/O: How much have you saved for your DC's college education?

[mom2akm]

We all know that the cost of college education is increasing substantially every year. So, are you doing something about it: like saving? Remember: this poll asks: how much have you saved, not how much you're hoping to save.

ETA: multiple replies permitted.

[AnnieW625]

Right now we have about $3500 in a 529 account. DD1 did inherit $10k from a family member when she was 18 months old so she has that in savings. DD2 has not as much money, maybe $2500, but we will continue to plan saving. Once DD2 is out of full time daycare in 3 yrs. we will be able to split that money ($450 per child) and add half to the 529 plan and half to their savings accounts.

[crl]

We are saving, but I think we will need to supplement the savings and choices will still be limited. I am fine with my kids going to public schools.

Catherine

[KrisM]

I didn't vote. My parents did give enough to pay about 1/3 for each. And when our house is oasis off in 2 years, we will save that for the rest. We should be have tuition covered and some room and board. The kids will likely need to work as well.

[SnuggleBuggles]

Going with magic. Dh's grandparents are really well off and really committeed to the boys and advanced education. I have my fingers crossed that those things will converge and help. We'll just do our best otherwise. I'd like to pay as much as we can for undergrad but work, grants, loans...will likely be necessary.

[Snow mom]

The cost of college is going through the roof so I doubt we'll be able to save enough. When I went to a very nice, well rated liberal arts college it was $26K/year including room and board. The same school is twice as much now a bit over 10 years later. I can't even imagine what it will be when DD is ready to go to college in 15 years.

ETA: I'd like DD to be able to attend a small private college if that's what she'd like. I work at a large public university and I see far too many kids fall through the cracks and not get out of college what they really should.

[nellonello]

We participate in our state Guaranteed Education Tuition program so basically paid today's state college tuition rate. When it is time for my kids to go to college the stat will pay for the most expensive in-state school or they will pay the same equivalent for an out of state or private school.

[khalloc]

I think we have maybe $25k. It could be alot more. I never listen when DH tells me finance stuff (I know! I know!). $25k is probably a low estimate. I would imagine its at least $50k I guess. But its not in a 529 account (some of it is), most of the $$ is part of a portfolio which we have earmarked for college.

[Fairy]

I had quite the argument with a friend over college funding many years ago, and it was such a lesson to me.

I used to think that if you can't afford to send your child to a 4-year college then you have no business having a child. Then I had my own child and I changed my tune. BUT, I still think that if you can't afford to have a child at all then you have no business having one, but that's another argument. College and funding that? What a sore topic that was for me and my close friend. I think you don't realize just how different you might be from a close friend till you ahve kids and how you approach parenthood. She puts a few bucks into a 529 a few months a year. I was mortified. I said how are you going to pay for college, and she said if he wants college, he can pay for it. I fell over. I could not possibly disagree more, and I won't go into my opinions on student loans, but things devolved from there. What I learned is that it's not that you ahve to walk in someone else's shoes, it's that you have to inhabit one's entire paradigm of thought. It was a major major eye opening experience for me.

We sock away enough money every month withiout fail since the month of DS's birth into a 529 for him to attend at a level far above a state school, and we hope by the time the time comes it will be at the level of a private/Ivy. I dunno that we'll get there, but it's our priority to do this. I realize that we're fortunate to be able to put away the money that we do, but we work our ever-lovin' tails off.

[khalloc]

I dont think parents should HAVE to foot the bill for college. Really its more important to save for retirement than for college. You can't take loans out for retirement, can you? However I do think its important to help send your kids to college. I would hope to pay for most of my kids college education. But I think it helps to take out a small loan that the child will then have to pay back. It showed me that not everything is free.

[Fairy]

My approach is that if you're able to swing it, then the priority is to not give your child instant debt upon age of majority. I just do not understand any other way. If I plan for retirement as a priority, then am I destined to have my child live in my basement till the end of time cuz he couldn't afford the college education he was going to need? I dunno, it's a tough question.

[Binkandabee]

We put $75.00 each into a 529 for each of them every month and have since birth.

I know this won't be enough to fully fund college for my kids (not even close), but I am of the mindset that my kids should have some financial stake in their education as well. It was never a goal of mine to fully fund their education. I want to give them a good start, but I expect a contribution from them.

[GaPeach_in_Ca]

I really have no idea. :) Is that an option? We have opened 529 for the kids, but I don't know how much we put into them. We have a fair amount of money saved/invested that is not earmarked for college, but is general savings.

I'm not that worried about it because of current daycare & house expenses. We'll have our house paid off when our 2nd is in college and between that and no daycare expenses, that's a good chunk of change that could pay for college as they go.

[iaam]

Like a PP, I also don't pay enough attention when DH tells me finance stuff! But, we regularly contribute to both kids' 529 accounts (automatically deducted from our checking account). DH did the math and set it up such that by the time they are ready to to attend college, we would have saved enough for them to attend an expensive private school for undergrad (based on his estimation of what will cost by then).

For us, this is a very important priority. And, we are thankful that we are able to do it.

[lablover]

We are in very good shape due to MIL opening 529 plans for the kids, as part of her estate planning. If we didn't have that, then we would be saving enough ourselves to ensure we can pay for college. (We are on target with retirement savings so that is not an issue for us.) My parents paid for my college education and I didn't take it for granted at all. I made sure I got good grades and was able to get a good job right out of school.

ETA: I am referring to paying for an in-state college. I don't intend to pay for an out of state school unless the school offers something that our state schools don't. Luckily we have lots of great choices in my state.

[marymoo86]

I contribute regularly to DDs 529 and have received money as well from my mom for her. I expect that she will set aside additional money in for DD as well.

I expect to have the money for state school and DD can earn via scholarships, work study, whatever to foot the bill for the rest if private school is what she wants. College costs too much to not have her invested in attending, doing well, and yes even helping to pay for it (even if it is just her spending money). I had the benefit of earning a partial scholarship, having my parents help, and also working part-time to chip in where I could. I see no reason my DD cannot do the same.

There are many ways to get a college education. Social security is not going to cut it for retirement.

[JBaxter]

We fund with bonus' We have enough for 1/2 of a State school education for both Logan and Connor. Nathan's 529 is doing very well now but Jack has very little at this point. We are committed to loaning Logan and Connor the rest of the money they need but will be paid back. That money will go to Jack's college fund.

[TwinFoxes]

We fund regularly, and MIL gives gifts, but I honestly doubt it will be enough since prices are just skyrocketing. So I'm not sure what to check. It seems like it should be enough...but I don't have a crystal ball. (I'm also OK with public, I went to a public university, and I know my Berkeley education is better than what people get at a lot of private schools.)

[goldenpig]

We plan to pay for all or most of their college and grad school. Currently we have $35K in DD and $29K in DS's 529's, partly from gifts from the grandparents. We are automatically contributing $500/mo to each of their 529's, so $6K/kid/year. Which would mean about $100K by the time DD goes to college and $130K for DS in their 529s, without accounting for investment growth (and hopefully not loss if the market crashes again!). I'm hoping that the market value will grow, but there's no way to know how much it will be by then. We are contributing that $1000/mo to their 529s on top of what we pay for preschool and nanny, so that $5K/mo we're currently paying now we could just keep paying as we're doing now when they are in college and grad school, which would be about $25K/yr each.

I don't even know if that's enough to cover everything. We would want them to have the option to go to private/Ivy if they can/want to, and grad school as well. Of course we will try for scholarships but that is never a given. And in college I used to work odd jobs as a dorm cafeteria cashier, library reshelver, assistant to a postdoc, etc. during the year and summers so I would be in favor of them working some (up to 10/hr a week during the school year) to contribute some money themselves. I don't think they should automatically get handed everything on a platter but as long as they study and work hard, we're willing to provide for their education, just like our parents did for us (DH had zero debt and I had maybe $40K in loans after grad school, but I was one of five and he's an only).

Kids are so freaking expensive. DH thinks I am insane for wanting another. It is a point of contention between us right now! I do agree that having a third would be a huge financial squeeze. I can't help feeling that we should have just one more, but I don't want to ruin our lives and our marriage either.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

We fund regularly, and MIL gives gifts, but I honestly doubt it will be enough since prices are just skyrocketing. So I'm not sure what to check. It seems like it should be enough...but I don't have a crystal ball. (I'm also OK with public, I went to a public university, and I know my Berkeley education is better than what people get at a lot of private schools.)

:yeahthat: especially the bolded...Go Bears! :)

[Babymakes3]

We did Florida Prepaid for DS when he was born, it will be paid for in a few months but before that I will add on all the other fees that colleges have started adding so I have no idea how long it will be before it's paid off with the add-ons!

[goldenpig]

We fund regularly, and MIL gives gifts, but I honestly doubt it will be enough since prices are just skyrocketing. So I'm not sure what to check. It seems like it should be enough...but I don't have a crystal ball. (I'm also OK with public, I went to a public university, and I know my Berkeley education is better than what people get at a lot of private schools.)

I agree, I don't want them to go to private school just because it's private. I just don't want to limit their school options. UC Berkeley is one of the best universities, public or private! I would be happy with them going to Berkeley, even if it's not QUITE as good as Stanford (where DH and I met). ;)

(BTW I went to a state university for my freshman year on a full ride scholarship, and then transferred to Stanford and then finished after two years--I had a lot of AP credits, so I joke that my parents got off easy with a half price Stanford degree :). And I went to UCSF for med school/residency/fellowship, so I'm definitely a fan of the UC system).

[gatorsmom]

Our business is doing well right now and so I am directly deducting straight from DH's paycheck for our retirement and the kids' educations. I went to a private college and would like to offer that possibility to my kids. So, while the business is doing well, I am doing all I can to save. I used the online calculators to plan for 4 years at Loyola University (just as an example) in the next 10-15 years. We are saving in 529 accounts for the kids. I'm not sure Gator, who is 8yo, will have quite enough for 4 full years but the rest of the kids should if we keep going with the same deductions. I didn't start saving for him early enough.


ETA: I see the OP wants numbers. The last time I looked at the statements, the kids' funds were around $37K each.

[american_mama]

I voted for several answers, but the two dominant ones are we are not saving enough and hoping for something magical to happen. In truth, I put what felt to me like large initial deposits into the kids 529 plans when we started them. This was quite a bite to our savings, since we started three accounts at the same time, with an unequal division of the amount we were willing to invest depending on the age of the children. I felt so proud of myself for doing this, since it was 100% my project, that I rested on my laurels quite a bit and didn't continue on with regular savings. Then our finances were such that we could not have done additional savings. Things are probably turning around, but I'm not signing up for monthly autodeduction yet.

Also, I am conscious of relying on "something magical will happen." The amounts needed for college are so high (something like $300+ per month per child from birth, if I recall standard advice correctly) and seem so distant. Plus, ideally, you're trying to do the same thing for retirement as well. So much money is needed that it's hard to take seriously, especially when the cost of college is highly variable by public/private, financial aid, etc.

I know financial aid is shrinking, but I haven't a clue how that will play out for my family. What kind of financial aid do families with our income get right now? No idea. How much do kids generally earn over a summer these days? No idea. When I was going to college, I think financial aid packages usually estimated a $2,000 per summer contribution from students, which was about (or slightly under) what I earned, as I recall.

I do expect my children to contribute to college in the forms of loans and a job. I don't expect them to pay for a large percentage of it (so probably 25% or less, probably way less), since I think the cost of college is so high these days that I can't see how them paying their own way is realistic. I also slightly favor a private college over a public, and that's pricier (but perhaps with more financial aid? Don't know.) But I have no desire to completely cover college expenses for my children, nor do I expect them to put themselves through.

[brittone2]

Can we talk some concerns here?

I have been reading that some prepaid programs have risks that may not be obvious. I live in a state where I don't feel confident in what would happen if the program went bust based on this article: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/11/us-usa-education-prepaid-idUSTRE80A0QG20120111

It seems as though even "guaranteed" plans may not really be guaranteed. I haven't explored the prepaid option thoroughly for our state. We currently have the kids' savings in 529s, but I am curious what people have read or been told about the future of some of the prepaid plans?

I also read recently on one of the HSing forums that colleges are increasingly tightening up the number of AP/CLEP credits that can transfer. I understand this to an extent; for example, I had a biology-heavy major and as a result my college would not allow AP bio credits to transfer, as I had to take "their" bio. I did transfer other AP credits. However, it seems like it is becoming increasingly difficult to "shorten" a child's time by a semester or two through the transfer of credits completed in high school.

Because we HS, we plan to eventually have our kids transition into community college courses or take classes at a 4 year university while still under the age of 18. For us this is part of setting up a natural progression to taking college coursework, and it also provides some validity to grades, etc. since as HSers we have to be concerned that admissions folks will be concerned about good grades granted by Mom ;) In my state, my children as homeschoolesers have the option of concurrent enrollment, but I have read that attempting to transfer over a certain number of credits can make kids ineligible for typical scholarships, so it is something we'd have to weigh.

Additionally, I've read that colleges and universities with established "agreements" with community colleges are not counting community college credits toward graduation requirements in many cases. They will state they have an agreement and credits will transfer; however, my understanding is that what is happening in many cases is that credits are transferred, but do not count toward *degree completion* and therefore don't shorten the time spent at the 4 year institution. Again, I understand that to a degree (comm. college rigor and scope may not be the same as the college deems necessary for completion of coursework for a given major) but I think a lot of parents are being mislead, thinking that the comm. college coursework will shorten their child's time spent at a 4 year institution. Add in course lockouts and other things that may arise with budget cuts to state schools, and it seems like it is becoming increasingly difficult to finish in less than 4 years for even the most academic-minded students, and more than 4 years may become increasingly common. I realize it already is to an extent, but I'm thinking of kids that have been "on track" in college but still won't be able to finish in 4 years due to cuts in courses offered.

That said, we would still use community college or 4 year university coursework as part of our transition from HS to college, but I think those are interesting points worth investigating, and something we plan to look into more extensively.

In my state, I have heard rumblings that 3 of the state universities may go private in the near future. I wonder with funding issues how common that scenario will be by the time our children attend college. Will we see substantially fewer public institutions? I know that I have read many anecdotal reports from parents stating that due to the economy and the rising costs of tuition, admission is becoming more competitive to public universities. That doesn't concern me too much; however, I think it may possibly reduce the likelihood of academic scholarships for kids who previously would have qualified for those scholarships with relative ease.

Any thoughts, experiences, or comments? These are things I'm just starting to look into more broadly, and concerns I've had on my mind.

[Moneypenny]

We save enough to help defray the costs, but not cover it entirely, and I'm fine with that. I feel very strongly that college students should have at least partial financial responsibility for their education. I know others feel differently and I don't judge that at all (really, I don't!), it's just how DH and I feel. (Both of us had to contribute to our college educations and feel that it was a much more valuable experience than it would have been if everything were provided to us.)

Anyway, we used to not save at all for this and figured we'd help as we could at the time, but I work in college admissions and have seen the really astonishing and horrifying increase to tuition/housing/fees that has come even since DD was born and decided we needed to do something formal to ensure we'd be able to help a bit.

We are also fortunate in that we live in an area with several colleges/universities within commuting distance and we will offer her free room and board at our house, as long as she keeps her room clean and doesn't come home too late, lol!

[brittone2]

I do expect my children to contribute to college in the forms of loans and a job. I don't expect them to pay for a large percentage of it (so probably 25% or less, probably way less), since I think the cost of college is so high these days that I can't see how them paying their own way is realistic. I also slightly favor a private college over a public, and that's pricier (but perhaps with more financial aid? Don't know.) But I have no desire to completely cover college expenses for my children, nor do I expect them to put themselves through.
Agree with this. While it may have been more doable in our generation, with the sharp rise in costs, I think it is going to become increasingly difficult to expect kids to contribute much more than book/fee/spending money.

On one of the HSing forums I read, it seems most middle class families are getting hit with expected family contribution of 30K per year or more. Those who have children receiving scholarships are finding it difficult to close the gap between that scholarship money and their total expected contribution. THeir (eta: very bright, high-scoring) kids are getting 35 or 50K in scholarships, but the overall cost of tuition is still so cost prohibitive that in many cases they are declining and opting for public universities.

[goldenpig]

Agree with this. While it may have been more doable in our generation, with the sharp rise in costs, I think it is going to become increasingly difficult to expect kids to contribute much more than book/fee/spending money.


Agreed, costs have gone up so quickly that I don't see how kids can ever pay for college on their own unless they come out with staggering debt or work full time and take a few credits at a time at a community college (like our nanny does--she's applying to nursing school). We're relatively well-off and I'm still stressed about paying for college/grad school!

[swissair81]

I have no idea how to save for college. How shall I say this? I am paying $19,000 this year (okay, I will probably be eligible for a Jewish Federation scholarship) for 3 kids to go to school. So no. And I don't consider Jewish school a luxury, so we will continue to kill ourselves to send them to this school despite the ridiculous prices for it. They will go to college, but they will probably have to help me pay for it. Additionally, we have to pay full tuition for DH's two kids from his previous marriage, and we have to pay for DH to visit them regularly (in Israel). And then there's the whole issue with out house that totally wiped out our savings. Sigh.

[niccig]

Additionally, I've read that colleges and universities with established "agreements" with community colleges are not counting community college credits toward graduation requirements in many cases. They will state they have an agreement and credits will transfer; however, my understanding is that what is happening in many cases is that credits are transferred, but do not count toward *degree completion* and therefore don't shorten the time spent at the 4 year institution. Again, I understand that to a degree (comm. college rigor and scope may not be the same as the college deems necessary for completion of coursework for a given major) but I think a lot of parents are being mislead, thinking that the comm. college coursework will shorten their child's time spent at a 4 year institution. Add in course lockouts and other things that may arise with budget cuts to state schools, and it seems like it is becoming increasingly difficult to finish in less than 4 years for even the most academic-minded students, and more than 4 years may become increasingly common. I realize it already is to an extent, but I'm thinking of kids that have been "on track" in college but still won't be able to finish in 4 years due to cuts in courses offered.



Beth, these are all good points. I'm not sure what's going to happen by the time our kids get to college age. I'm hoping a lot of the mess is sorted out by then. I think things will change several times by then, so don't plan on something that's an option now being available in 15 years.

I know now it is difficult to get finished in 4 years, it's been that way for some time. At the moment it seems worse than normal though - a good half of my classmates only got 2 classes this semester, which was very unusual. The college told the department to cut enrollment numbers in the classes as the university is over enrolled. Many students are on financial aid and you MUST take a full workload, so they picked up 2 other classes that they don't need for their degree completion to make the full workload.

[swissair81]

I think it depends on the degree program. My community college has an agreement with all the area universities to accept their nursing degree in its entirety (with additional credits for clinicals and the licensure exam). I got something like 89 credits (out of 129) for my degree as a whole.

[brittone2]

I think it depends on the degree program. My community college has an agreement with all the area universities to accept their nursing degree in its entirety (with additional credits for clinicals and the licensure exam). I got something like 89 credits (out of 129) for my degree as a whole.
I think there are many places where these agreements are still in place and honored, but what I've been reading is that it is becoming increasingly common for 4 year institutions to make it nearly impossible for a student to substantially shorten their time at the 4 year college. They'll "transfer" the credits, but the student just ends up with a larger # of credits; they aren't counted toward degree completion. I realize this is not the case everywhere, but will be a trend to watch, because it wasn't on my radar until I read a very long and informative thread elsewhere recently.
It caught my attention in particular since we plan to have our kids attend comm. college or a 4 year state institution when they are high school aged as part of our HSing. I haven't necessarily expected that to shorten their time to degree completion, but I think many families assume that will be the case when comm. colleges tout their "agreements" with state universities.

[baymom]

We are hoping to pay for both kids to go to undergrad and grad school. DH and I feel so fortunate that our own parents did that for us so we could begin our adult life debt free and it's high on our priority list for our own DC to start their adult lives the same way. Right now, we have what we have calculated using the 'rule of 10' (instead of the 'rule of 7') to be enough to fully cover each of them in 529 plans and don't plan to add any more in the next few years (have some expensive home projects to budget for). Still, down the line, we know that we'll add more since higher edu is so expensive. Plus, I'm sure the cost of edu will continue to increase dramatically in the next 15 years. Both sets of grandparents have generously contributed to the 529 which has helped a lot.

[swissair81]

I think there are many places where these agreements are still in place and honored, but what I've been reading is that it is becoming increasingly common for 4 year institutions to make it nearly impossible for a student to substantially shorten their time at the 4 year college. They'll "transfer" the credits, but the student just ends up with a larger # of credits; they aren't counted toward degree completion. I realize this is not the case everywhere, but will be a trend to watch, because it wasn't on my radar until I read a very long and informative thread elsewhere recently.
It caught my attention in particular since we plan to have our kids attend comm. college or a 4 year state institution when they are high school aged as part of our HSing. I haven't necessarily expected that to shorten their time to degree completion, but I think many families assume that will be the case when comm. colleges tout their "agreements" with state universities.

This might actually be specific to nursing programs. I read an article in my BSN program (it was actually assigned reading) about the concessions made for nursing students who are making the effort to do the RN-BSN completion. There are a number of them, but the programs do it, because otherwise there is absolutely no reason nurses who can already practice would go out of their way to get a Bachelors (unless they want a MSN, in which case they have to.)

[brittone2]

This might actually be specific to nursing programs. I read an article in my BSN program (it was actually assigned reading) about the concessions made for nursing students who are making the effort to do the RN-BSN completion. There are a number of them, but the programs do it, because otherwise there is absolutely no reason nurses who can already practice would go out of their way to get a Bachelors (unless they want a MSN, in which case they have to.)
That makes sense. I know those agreements are still in place, but it seems less common. I definitely think nursing is one of the areas where you see it working out more often right now. I just think it is one of those things that many parents are mislead about in general. It seems like the options for making college more affordable seem to be shrinking. It was tough before, but it seems to be increasingly more difficult.

[swissair81]

That makes sense. I know those agreements are still in place, but it seems less common. I definitely think nursing is one of the areas where you see it working out more often right now. I just think it is one of those things that many parents are mislead about in general. It seems like the options for making college more affordable seem to be shrinking. It was tough before, but it seems to be increasingly more difficult.

I'm not sure if this is still the case, but back when I was a new nurse, hospitals bankrolled the RN-BSN completion- either as a loan, or they forgave it after a certain number of years of service. These are definitely things to look into when helping our kids look into programs.

[scrooks]

Dh and i were discussing this topic this afternoon after I read this thread. We put a small amount of $$ in a 529 for each child each month. His comment was there is no way costs could keep going up at the current rate they are because then very very few would be able to afford college. I hope he is right.

My MIL was recently saying she heard the trend was for the time for degrees to be shortened to help defray costs for example she heard some degrees may be able to be completed in 3 years versus 4....

[brittone2]

Dh and i were discussing this topic this afternoon after I read this thread. We put a small amount of $$ in a 529 for each child each month. His comment was there is no way costs could keep going up at the current rate they are because then very very few would be able to afford college. I hope he is right.

My MIL was recently saying she heard the trend was for the time for degrees to be shortened to help defray costs for example she heard some degrees may be able to be completed in 3 years versus 4....
I haven't seen any evidence that they are shortening time to degree, but I'd love for that to be the case! If you find out anything let me know. To me it seems like the trend of taking more than 4 yrs is continuing to grow, and with budget cuts, etc. students seem to be getting locked out of more classes needed for graduation. Couple that with limits on transfer credits from CC, and schools not wanting to allow AP or CLEP credits to count toward degree completion.

eta: found this in Washington Post saying some scholars think it will be a new trend but that it hasn't caught on yet
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/3-year-college-degree-programs-not-catching-on/2011/06/15/AGX7VYWH_story.html

I did a 5 year combo bachelor's and master's that was part of one program (Master's in Physical Therapy). I had internships in summers, and we had to take courses over winter break as well. I always had basically an 18 credit courseload (standard for my major) so would have had a large # of credits after 3 years. But because of my program, there was no way to accelerate faster than that, kwim? It seems like it would only apply to certain majors. Mine was so specific, with such a specific courseload, it wouldn't have been an option, even though we had taken a ton of credit hours by the end of 3 years. My jr. year I had 5 lab courses plus my lectures. Eeek. My school was also savvy and our major had the highest tuition of any major because of our courseload and the fact that we took classes during winter break and so forth. So there was no way to lower the cost, kwim?

[scrooks]

I just googled it and came up with this artlcle....
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/09/27/umass_amherst_to_offer_three_year_degree_program/

Its a couple years old though but its interesting!

This one is again older but about shortening advanced degrees...

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2010-03-25-medical-school-early_N.htm

[TwinFoxes]

I agree, I don't want them to go to private school just because it's private. I just don't want to limit their school options. UC Berkeley is one of the best universities, public or private! I would be happy with them going to Berkeley, even if it's not QUITE as good as Stanford (where DH and I met). ;)



:11: GP, it is ON. ;)

[blisstwins]

My hope is to pay for my children's college fully and help defray the costs of graduate professional school. Our parents did it for us and I think education is more important now than it ever was. I am sickened by the costs, however. We save $500 per month per child + all gifts+7500 per year and it will not be enough for a private university. We will not qualify for financial aid and I know my children will only be eligible for loans, which is what is prompting us to be so aggresive. The whole topic makes me sick and I totally agree with Fairy on this topic. I have relatives who don't sweat it and for us trying our best to contribute to their fund is something we lose sleep over (I do, my husband always thinks everything will work out). I don't really know what to say about this, other than it is a major priority for us and even when we had hardly anything we put $50 a month away for the kids.

[sariana]

DH is a veteran with >0% disability. Currently our children are eligible to attend a state school tuition free. We have 529 plans that would be used for housing and other non-tuition expenses if they go to a state school.

If they want to go to private schools, they will have to find ways to finance that.

However, I am just waiting for the veteran thing to be taken away. If we count on it and limit our contributions to their 529s, we're screwed because we won't have enough. If we don't count on it and contribute accordingly, and it stays, we're kind of screwed because the money must be used for education, and they are the youngest of the cousins (i.e. there is no one else to transfer the account to, unless one of us old folks decides to go back to school).

So we're kind of splitting the difference. We do not contribute enough to cover their college expenses. (Relatives also have made substantial contributions to their accounts, which we very much appreciate.) But we do continue to contribute on a monthly basis because we know there will be some sort of expenses no matter what.

I did not vote in the poll because none of the choices really applied to us.

[AnnieW625]

However, I am just waiting for the veteran thing to be taken away. If we count on it and limit our contributions to their 529s, we're screwed because we won't have enough. If we don't count on it and contribute accordingly, and it stays, we're kind of screwed because the money must be used for education, and they are the youngest of the cousins (i.e. there is no one else to transfer the account to, unless one of us old folks decides to go back to school).

I used to work for the agency that runs the veterans services programs for the State of California and I can't see them getting rid of the tuition waivers for veterans with ratable disabilities any time soon. That agency is all about veterans and providing services for the people that need them, and they are very proud of that. I am not 100% sure, but I am pretty sure that profits the home loan program (IE: people making their payments) helps fund the tuition reiumbursement program, along with the CVSO (County Veterans Service Officer).

[brittone2]

I used to work for the agency that runs the veterans services programs for the State of California and I can't see them getting rid of the tuition waivers for veterans with ratable disabilities any time soon. That agency is all about veterans and providing services for the people that need them, and they are very proud of that. I am not 100% sure, but I am pretty sure that profits the home loan program (IE: people making their payments) helps fund the tuition reiumbursement program, along with the CVSO (County Veterans Service Officer).
I am guessing the concern is how long agencies like that will be funded by the government, not that the agency itself wants to slash benefits and services.

[AnnieW625]

I am guessing the concern is how long agencies like that will be funded by the government, not that the agency itself wants to slash benefits and services.

as long as they have a home loan program and veterans homes the agency will be in place. The agency is almost 100% funded by these programs; when I was there the only faction that wasn't paid by either of these programs was one small accounting unit that serviced the veterans homes, and those funds came from the state budget.

[dogmom]

Seriously, our family income puts us in the top 30% of households in this country, so above the mean. There is no way in heck that we can save $500/mo per child (2 kids). I would have to stop saving for my retirement all together, never go on vacation, sell a car, and move. That is almost half my mortgage and I live in a high COL area. I mean, that is a fifth of my take home income.

[niccig]

Seriously, our family income puts us in the top 30% of households in this country, so above the mean. There is no way in heck that we can save $500/mo per child (2 kids). I would have to stop saving for my retirement all together, never go on vacation, sell a car, and move. That is almost half my mortgage and I live in a high COL area. I mean, that is a fifth of my take home income.

This is why I think something has to give and change. Costs can't keep going up pricing out families in top income brackets and then student loans will get even larger. Isn't there more student loan debt in this country, more than credit card debt I think.

Something has to change.

[ett]

Seriously, our family income puts us in the top 30% of households in this country, so above the mean. There is no way in heck that we can save $500/mo per child (2 kids). I would have to stop saving for my retirement all together, never go on vacation, sell a car, and move. That is almost half my mortgage and I live in a high COL area. I mean, that is a fifth of my take home income.


I'm with you! There is no way we can save anything close to $500/month for each kid. If posters on this board who are mostly in the middle/upper salary bracket can't save enough for college, how the heck is anybody else going to send their kids to college.

[blisstwins]

I'm with you! There is no way we can save anything close to $500/month for each kid. If posters on this board who are mostly in the middle/upper salary bracket can't save enough for college, how the heck is anybody else going to send their kids to college.

This is kind of my point. We have a good income and we can barely save this--we make choices to put this money away. Our car has 130K miles, etc...but we do it because I know we will not qualify for aid and our kids need college. If they chose a state college or we need a state school, that is fine. But I don't want them not to be able to go to a private school if there is an option they would like. My husband and I both went to private colleges. But it we can't pay for it at our income level+a commitment to saving I don't know who can. Only the rich? I think there is a serious bubble in higher ed.

[Calmegja2]

We have enough saved for all four to go anywhere they want to go.

However- our financial planner advises against parents completely footing the bill. So we may be paying for large portions of undergrad, requiring them to pay for some of it, and then re-investing the rest.

We are undecided, but need to figure it out soon. Our eldest will go to school in two years. And she has expensive tastes, and the qualifications to go. LOL

[belovedgandp]

We are 10 years away from college still. In today's dollars we have enough to send all three kids to a state university for about 2 1/2 years. That's in designated education funds. We've stopped earmarking money saved into college funds. We have other investments that could be used for college as needed, but don't want to tie up too much in just education accounts.

While I don't want my kids to have college debt (I had none and DH had tons), our intended policy is paying for undergrad at a state school. We both got great educations at ours that served us well. But we'll see what our financial cards hold and what the skills/interests of our kids are in 10 years also.

[american_mama]

I like Beth's points about concerns. I've read just a little about prepaid tuition plans, and the devil seems to be in the details. My specific concern is what if my children do not go to school in-state, which is highly likely for us. Some prepaid programs give you back your money with a rate of return that is very low, in which case you'd have been much better off simply investing in a 529. Other have more favorable rules.

I wouldn't bet much money that we'll still live in our current state in 8 years, when DD1 goes to college, much less 14 years for DS. So prepaid tuition plans don't appeal.

Here's one article from a financial planner cautioning about prepaid plans.
http://djmarotta.wordpress.com/2005/11/09/prepaid-tuition-programs-may-be-fool%E2%80%99s-gold-2005-10-24/

[DualvansMommy]

We had signifincant amount of money from our sale of condo 5 years ago, it was at the peak right before market crashed (particularly for condo's/townhomes). I met my DH who already had his condo with only 10 years of mortgage left & at very reasonable cost too at 1300 monthly in a high COL. We used our wedding monies to pay off the said mortgage. We used my salary from the time of our engagement entirely in our savings while living on his salary to cover both of us, bills, food, entertainment and savings.

Our planning gave us a very nice cushion of downpayment towards our new home (45%) to keep our mortgage LOW, so we could travel, fix up our home, and save substainably for retirement. We used the entire proceeds of our condo sale in CD's until we our DS was born which was transferred to his 529 for college. That gives us a lot of options of choices for school for him, it'll only be for undergraduate though as he'll be expected to pay for his graduate schooling if he wants to pursue a Masters.

We were fortunate enough to have parents support us through our 4 years of undergraduate but I paid for my graduate studies, while DH got his paid for by his employer.