529 college savings plan advice

[pharmd 08902]

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529 college savings plan advice

 

[ChalupaBatman86]

I could not tell from reading this if you actually have kids now. Their age makes a big difference. You can’t put 100k in one year.


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[ChalupaBatman86]

There is a federal max, and then it varies by state. If you start when they are young you don’t need to max it out. Just contribute an amount you feel comfortable with every month. It will grow to a nice chunk of change quicker than you think. They have index funds based on graduation year.


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[lord999]

There's one odd point to make. There are certain places (University of Washington) that do a prepaid tuition program as a 529. Depending on your views toward your state's funding and the chances of your child going to this school, they may be better options than investing but you have to know the politics of your state.

For instance, in Utah before they yanked it, the University of Utah offered a direct 529 where you bought credits at the current price but be good whenever you ended up using them (and would roll over to graduate as well). Considering that the state has an influx of non-paying Californians, state support has drastically been cut, and locking in the prices now was definitely better than any high risk investment. However, the remaining plan is considered extremely customer favorable.

You might want to look at the Morningstar reports for this. They do quite a bit of the research for you.

Morningstar Names Best 529 College Savings Plans for 2017

I don't have children, but I actually think it is more important for my children to be socialized among the "right" people than it is to learn anything (they'll learn anyway).

 

[BenJammin]

My parents signed up for the Texas Tomorrow Fund in 1995 and used that for my undergrad. It was a program guaranteed by the state that allowed you to pay current tuition at 1995 rates.