It seems hard to pick up a newspaper these days without running into advice from College Coach finance expert, Robert Weinerman!

In an article in this weekend’s Wall Street Journal entitled “August Is Time for a Financial Reboot,” Robert shares his insight for parents of high schoolers on early college financial planning, including scholarship searches, financial aid calculations, and asset allocation for college savings.

And in today’s US News and World Report, Robert offers his perspective on recent student loan legislation in an article entitled “New Student Loan Deal Good, and Bad, for Borrowers.” 

Did you invest in a prepaid tuition plan? Is your child about to go off to college? Congratulations if you answered yes to both of these questions! You probably got a great rate of return and have some of your son’s or daughter’s tuition already paid. And here’s some more good news: all that investment growth you got from paying for college in the past will be tax free to you when you use the Plan to pay for college today. All prepaid tuition plans are 529 plans (except the Massachusetts Prepaid Plan, which derives its tax-free status from another section of the federal tax code) and share all of the tax benefits of 529 savings plans.

Unfortunately, using your prepaid tuition plan is not as simple as writing a check to the college. You’ll want to take some steps now so that you use the plan properly when the bill comes due.

As spring turns to summer, the challenge of applying for college ends and the challenge of paying for college begins.  Though that first college bill can be daunting, remember that you have 3 options to pay for college:  you can tap your savings (your accumulated past income), pay as you go (out of your current income), or you can borrow (committing your future income to pay down education debt).  Choose 1 strategy or combine all 3!

Happy 529 Day — aka Educational Savings Day (5/29, get it?).  A toast to all the savers!

If you have a child enrolling in college, and you’ve saved for it in a 529 Savings Plan, congratulations!  It’s time to get your tax break!  While paying for college with 529 Plan assets is not difficult, there are a few things to keep in mind.  Here’s what you should know: