{"id":13302,"date":"2022-11-04T23:07:49","date_gmt":"2022-11-04T23:07:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/?p=13302"},"modified":"2023-06-27T09:46:52","modified_gmt":"2023-06-27T16:46:52","slug":"the-road-ahead-investing-in-your-childs-future-dreams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/the-road-ahead-investing-in-your-childs-future-dreams\/","title":{"rendered":"Investing in your Child’s Future Dreams"},"content":{"rendered":"

It seems that part of parenting is imagining what your kid is going to do when\u00a0the<\/mark>y grow up. A child who enjoys tinkering may be destined to be an engineer. One who loves to put on a show might become a director one day. We\u2019re always on\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0lookout for\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0spark that will determine where a child will go in life. But we also know that some form of education beyond high school will often be\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0way\u00a0the<\/mark>y\u2019re going to get\u00a0the<\/mark>re.<\/p>\n

When my daughter started elementary school, I noticed that parents had a whole variety of ideas about how\u00a0the<\/mark>y were going to afford higher education. Some parents would reflect on\u00a0the<\/mark>ir own experience and assume\u00a0the<\/mark>ir child will pay\u00a0the<\/mark>ir own way by juggling a job and schoolwork. Othe<\/mark>rs wanted\u00a0the<\/mark>ir kid to attend two years at a community college to save money. Many people figure student loans are inevitable and hope\u00a0the<\/mark>ir financial situation will change by\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0time high school graduation is on\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0horizon. But a lot of\u00a0the<\/mark>se plans simply amount to putting off saving and hoping for\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0best.<\/p>\n

Othe<\/mark>r parents I\u2019ve encountered thought\u00a0the<\/mark>y could position\u00a0the<\/mark>ir child for generous scholarships. Perhaps\u00a0the<\/mark>ir offspring would take up an activity, like robotics or\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0bassoon, or a sport, like lacrosse or fencing, that will get\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0attention of college admissions officers.\u00a0The<\/mark>re\u2019s also\u00a0the<\/mark> traditional method of parents demanding high grades and stellar SAT scores in\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0hopes of earning more merit aid.\u00a0The<\/mark>\u00a0fact is most college-bound kids are not getting lavished with hefty scholarships. And some kids decide to take a different route, like learning a specialized trade.<\/p>\n

More money means more options<\/h2>\n

One way or anothe<\/mark>r,\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0families we know were able to send\u00a0the<\/mark>ir children to college if that\u2019s where\u00a0the<\/mark>ir path was leading\u00a0the<\/mark>m. But some had to make hard choices about whethe<\/mark>r\u00a0the<\/mark>y could realistically afford\u00a0the<\/mark>ir child\u2019s favorite school. When you\u2019ve got\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0funds to support your child\u2019s dream,\u00a0the<\/mark>y have more options. Maybe\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0in-state school is a lot cheaper, but your child has found a program a few states away that really feeds\u00a0the<\/mark>ir passion. You don\u2019t want to crush\u00a0the<\/mark>ir dreams for lack of money.<\/p>\n

Saving for college means giving your child more options when\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0time comes to choose a school. More options to study what\u00a0the<\/mark>y want, where\u00a0the<\/mark>y want, without missing out on an enriching campus experience. By starting early, you can build a healthy fund that can minimize\u2014or even eliminate\u2014the<\/mark>\u00a0burden of student debt. Here\u2019s how it works:<\/p>\n

Start young<\/strong>. When your child is born, you\u2019ve got 18 years to save for\u00a0the<\/mark>ir post-secondary education, whethe<\/mark>r that\u2019s college or a trade school. When\u00a0the<\/mark>y enter high school, you\u2019ve got four. Money builds on itself\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0longer you have it invested, so\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0earlier you start,\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0more money you can accumulate.<\/p>\n

Save tax free<\/strong>. 529 savings plans allow you to invest tax free, and if your child decides not to furthe<\/mark>r\u00a0the<\/mark>ir education, you can transfer\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0money to a sibling or grandchild. You can even use it to furthe<\/mark>r your own education. Every state offers a 529 plan, but you don\u2019t have to use\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0one in your state. 529 plans can cover tuition, books and supplies, and even housing expenses.<\/p>\n

Prioritize<\/strong>. Start with a plan to put away regular amounts of money in a designated higher education savings account.\u00a0The<\/mark>n take a look at your spending choices to see if\u00a0the<\/mark>re are othe<\/mark>r sources of money that can help you build that fund. For example, an inheritance or work bonus can be put away to boost your savings.\u00a0The<\/mark>\u00a0point is, don\u2019t wait.<\/p>\n

When my daughter started kindergarten, her grandfathe<\/mark>r opened 529 plans for each of his grandchildren. By\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0time she was ready for college,\u00a0the<\/mark>re was enough saved so she didn\u2019t have to worry about\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0cost when she was looking at schools. So now for my last piece of advice: If grandparents are contributing to a college fund, be sure your child thanks\u00a0the<\/mark>m often for giving\u00a0the<\/mark>m such a generous opportunity.<\/p>\n

Wherever your kids\u2014or grandkids\u2014are on\u00a0the<\/mark>ir journey through life, make a plan to talk to your financial planner about investing for higher education so\u00a0the<\/mark>y have options when\u00a0the<\/mark>\u00a0time comes.<\/p>\n

Please contact us at 206.217.2583 or info@arrivity.com<\/a>\u00a0if we can assist you or someone you know with financial planning.<\/p>\n

Liz is a Late Boomer in the sandwich generation who started an independent writing and brand consulting practice after years as a senior marketing executive. She lives in Seattle, Washington. Her mother lives nearby and her daughter comes home during college breaks.<\/em><\/small><\/p>\n

The foregoing content reflects the opinions of Liz Behlke and is subject to change at any time without notice. Content provided herein is for informational purposes only and should not be used or construed as investment advice or a recommendation regarding the purchase or sale of any security. There is no guarantee that the statements, opinions or forecasts provided herein will prove to be correct. Past performance may not be indicative of future results. Indices are not available for direct investment. Any investor who attempts to mimic the performance of an index would incur fees and expenses which would reduce returns Securities investing involves risk, including the potential for loss of principal. There is no assurance that any investment plan or strategy will be successful.<\/em><\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It seems that part of parenting is imagining what your kid is going to do when\u00a0they grow up. A child who enjoys tinkering may be destined to be an engineer. One who loves to put on a show might become a director one day. We\u2019re always on\u00a0the\u00a0lookout for\u00a0the\u00a0spark that will determine where a child will […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":13831,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13302"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13302"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13302\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13883,"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13302\/revisions\/13883"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13831"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13302"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13302"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arrivity.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13302"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}