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A Saving Option That Can't Be TouchedSep 25 '00 Write an essay on this topic.There are several different theories out about the best way to save for your child's education. I can only tell you about the way I am choosing to save because I believe it to be the best route to go. Pre-paid college funds! I live in Texas and we have the Texas Tomorrow Fund. This fund allows parents, grandparents or whomever to *buy* a child's future college tuition at today's prices. You can purchase a 4 year plan, a 2 year plan or a split plan, which allows 2 years at a junior college followed by 2 years at a university. The cost seems minimal when you spread it out over a number of years and you will really be patting yourself on the back when your child is 10 years old and his college tuition is already paid for! The Good: The monthly payments for the plan you choose to buy are not optional. This payment is treated like a bill so you can not be late and you must pay every month. This is especially helpful for those people who have the best of intentions when it comes to saving money, but have problems with following through. My children each have the 2 year plan right now and I will pay $80 a month for 10 years for this education. When our children are 10 years old, we will then purchase an additional 2 years if we haven't already done so. You can add to your child's plan so you could start off with buying 2 years when your child is first born, pay that off in 10 years and then add another 2 years to have it all practically paid for when your child is ready for college. If your child decides not to go to college, you get your money back or you have the option of transferring the funds to another child's account. The Bad: No, you don't get all the interest on the money that sits for years and years, but you get tomorrow's college tuition at today's prices. I'd say that is a great trade off! The Bottom Line: Your child's tuition will be paid for no matter what! If your family runs into a personal crisis you will not have the option of dipping into the college fund with intentions of paying yourself back and never doing it. You can't touch your child's money! And no matter what happens to you, your child will have a college fund ready and waiting for him when he is ready to go to college. You can start when your child is first born and pay a small amount every month and not even miss that money. I also have a minor child savings account set up for my children so there is no minimum amount required and no monthly fee. Right now, I clip coupons like a mad woman use them religiously when I do my family's shopping. When the receipts tell me that I save $7.80 on my total bill because of my coupons, I put $7.80 in my children's savings account. It seems like an insignificant amount of money but it will add up because my children are only 19 months and 3 months and that is the whole idea. I will never miss $7 here and $10 there. That money will be a nice chunk of change when my children are ready for college and I don't even miss the money. It is your responsibility as a parents to ensure that your child has a high school education. Whether or not you take on the responsibility of ensuring that your child has college education in addition to his high school education is your decision, but with pre-paid college funds how can you not? Check them out, it will be worth your time!  |
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