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Money Matters: College Savings Vehicles
Last December, I became the primary caregiver of my late sister’s 5-year-old son. I’m currently seeking legal custody as his guardian. As a single “auntie-mommy,” how do I determine the best college...
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College Aid 101
If your children are destined for college, one thing is certain–you can expect to write some large checks to pay tuition, room, board, and other expenses. Although inflation is relatively dormant in...
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Financial Challenge
Sophonia Hardaway saves for her daughter’s college education as a way to honor her own father. “He paid for my college education with cash. I never had any student loan debt,” she says. Hardaway...
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Millions Available to Pay for School
Attention single, working moms. Do you have a desire to earn your college degree but haven’t found the time, money, or confidence to accomplish your goal? Well, an empowerment series, Women Who Rule...
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Kids & Money: Paying for College and The Myth of Financial Independence
Going independent to get more money for school is an urban myth. Whether you have a child that’s prepping for college or your young one has finally made it there, the rumor of filing for financial...
View ArticlePaying for the High Cost of Higher Education
Brenda and Mike Lipscomb relocated from New Jersey to Maryland in 2007 for better employment opportunities. In 2008, the couple moved again, this time to northern Virginia for better post-high school...
View ArticleA Fun Way to Track College Savings
Make college savings fun and personal with My College Fund Journal (Sarah Blanton Publishing; $19.95). Use this specialized log to keep track of contributions you make to your child’s college fund. It...
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The Business of College Planning
Patricia Roberts-Rose and her husband, Gene, started off setting aside $50 per month for their daughters, Amaya and Aliya, when they were born. “Today, we deposit $100 per month for each child,” says...
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Saving for College: A Family Affair
The cost of a college education has dramatically increased over the past decade. As a result, parents and students have continued to accumulate more college debt and the ability to pay it off has...
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Get a 529 Plan Boost
Sean and Vera Hadley with their sons Cameron and Christian You know about the possibility of your 401(k) contributions being matched (typically by an employer), but did you know that your 529 savings...
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Want to Lower college costs? Make Your Kid go to Class!
(Image: File) A few weeks ago, University of Indiana Sophomore, Andrew Havill was telling his father Greg about a story he was reading profiling an app called Class 120. For $199/year, the app uses GPS...
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Put a 529 Plan on Your Back-to-School Shopping List
(Image: Thinkstock) This post was written by Dawn Brown, CFP®, senior financial advisor with Altfest Personal Wealth Management. For more about the author, read her bio at the end of this post. Summer...
View ArticleIs Your Student Loan Debt Affecting Your Child’s Education Plans?
September is National College Savings Month—an effort designed to raise awareness about the importance for families to save for their children’s higher education expenses and reduce reliance on loans....
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How to Budget For a 529 Plan
This post was written by Dawn Brown, CFP®, a regular BE Smart contributor and senior financial adviser at Altfest Personal Wealth Management. For more about the author, scroll down to the end of this...
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What to Do When You Don’t Have Enough College Savings
The moment parents wait their entire lives for is finally here; it’s high school graduation season, and your kid is heading off to college this fall. You couldn’t be prouder in this moment, except for...
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