college savings

  image by flickr user 401(K)2012, cc license A lot of college financial news hit the internet over the weekend and today. Catch up on what you may have missed below.

  sallie mae, how america pays for college, figure 11 It's been known for a while that grandparents help their grandchildren to save and pay for college. But what is that role exactly? Little has been known before. For instance, in Sallie Mae's How America Pays for College, grandparents are lumped into a category with friends and other relatives. In all, this group contributes 5%.  Such data tells us little about the role of grandparents. However, a new Fidelity Investments illuminates the generosity of grandparents when it comes to college savings.

At least once a year, an article about target numbers for college savings are published on major media websites. Recent articles include this one on NYtimes.com, this one on usatoday.com, and this one on reuters.com. A new one came out just this week on Foxbusiness.com. As one can see, this is common territory. But, here at College Parents of America, we think that such articles serve as helpful reminder of how difficult it can be to project out college costs and figuring out your needed amount of savings.

  image on cc license from flickr user Tax Credits 85 percent of parents report that saving for college is one of their top three savings priorities for 2014. One-third (34 percent) name it their top savings priority for the New Year.

  photo by flickr user lendingmemo (cc license) A recent Reuters piece details a few tricks that some families do in hopes of getting a better financial aid offers. However, unlike most news articles concerning financial aid tricks, these tricks are considered ill-advised. As the article states, “These methods carry significant risks and may not even work.”

 pic from flickr user Tax CreditsIntroduction

  The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released a report regarding 529 Plans. 529 Plans are widely-accessible savings plans that parents can use to contribute to future college expenses. Citing difficulty for many to pay for college (largely due to rapid increases in college costs), the GAO decided to look at the value and use of 529 Plans, which receive certain tax preferences--$1.6 Billion in 2011 alone. 

"It's decision time for high school seniors who've applied to college and received acceptance letters. And as tuition levels rise, especially at top-level private schools, a growing number of financial experts are warning students to steer clear of student loan debt." -- NPR, Talk of the Nation, March 31, 2011.