When you see the market fluctuate, do you wonder if your kids can still go to college?  Last week we talked a little about helping get the right school, and if retirement and college funding is possible (it is!).  This week I wanted to offer a few key tips on college planning, and also link you to an article I wrote about staying cool in a volatile market.  You can find the article here.  http://creativefinancialgrp.com/Custom.aspx?apId=17521

Save!

The first rule of getting to college (or investing) is saving.  If you don’t save you don’t have capital and without capital, you won’t get far.  Put aside something each day, week, or month toward your students college.  Whether it is cash under the mattress or a 529 plan, make sure you are putting money back for the future.

Invest

While burying your money in the backyard may keep it safe, it isn’t going to help it grow.  With the inflation rate, even if you have enough to pay for your students schooling today, next year it will fall short.  That is why investing toward college is so important.  Your money needs to at least grow at the rate of inflation to keep its same value.  Inflation rates are currently at about 2.9% so you should look to gain that as an average over your saving for college, if not more.  There are many options to help your money grow, and most of you probably already have investments aimed at helping pay for your child’s schooling.

Review!

If you already have investments set aside for your child’s college education, where are they?  How you are saving today has a big impact on the future.  There are a number of ways that you can make the BEST use of what you have.  Have your savings plan reviewed by a professional.

Thanks for reading,

Kurt

Kurt Supe offers securities and advisory services through cfd Investments, Inc. and Creative Financial Designs, Inc, respectively. Member FINRA/SIPC. Indy College Funding is not affiliated with the cfd companies.