Sending My Son to College

As a parent, there is nothing more wonderful then looking into my son’s eyes and seeing the endless possibilities for his future.  As much as I love imagining him as doctor, lawyer, or president, I cannot help but think of that $32,000 year price tag that presently accompanies the tuition tacked onto a brighter future. As a current college student, I know first hand how much more expensive that future is becoming each year.  My biggest fear would be watching my son, Joshua, place limitations on his future based on finances.

I will never forget entering my professional program with the terror accompanied by signing multiple loan forms, since my parents were never able to instigate college funds.    Consequently, I’ll be over $200,000 in debt by the time I graduate from veterinary school, and I cannot help but ponder how I can save for Joshua’s future while concurrently financing my own.  Thus, I’ve started on a path to finding reasonable ways of starting Joshua’s college fund. 

The first avenue I researched was a 529 Plan, which is a unique state and federal tax-advantaged plan listed under section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code and was created in order to encourage families to start college funds.  Although each plan is unique to the state of residence, most offer an assortment of age-based asset allocation options.

One of the most publicized programs is the Upromise which is sponsored by the SLM Corporation and allows you to take daily family spending and turn it into a percent saving for college, which can be directly transferred into the 529 Plan.

Also, online saving accounts are a great way to set money aside while yielding a 5% annual interest rate, which is higher then opening the traditional savings account from a private bank.  I was also able to have $10 directly deposited into the account from each paycheck, which is one way of consistently placing money into the account.