As I write this post, my children are only 8 and 5 years old. We’re not even close to the end of elementary school and junior high and high school are a very distant thought. How, then, can we imagine that it’s time to start saving up for college? Or better yet, that we probably should have even started years ago?
How soon is too soon to start saving for college?
The answer in short: Never. As hard as it is to imagine, our little bundles of joy, aka “tiny feet” will be heading off to college before we know it and the very best thing we can do for them (and for ourselves) is to be prepared.
Why start college planning early?
Now, I still have a few college loans I’m paying off nearly 20 years later and considering the ever rising costs of a college education, I can’t imagine what it will cost by the time they get there. To put this in perspective, my younger sister both attended UVA exactly 16 years apart. My tuition as an out of state student back then was less than her in-state tuition today! And it’s not getting any cheaper.
The approximate annual tuition for a four-year public college is around $18,000 while you’re looking at upwards of $40,000 for a private institution. The estimated incremental increase is around 3.2% annually, which means that this number is likely to be even more astronomical by the time our kids get there. Imagine how much more prepared we’d all be if we started planning for college from day 1? So many parents get stuck having waited too late to start saving for college and end up being forced to sacrifice some comforts such as vacations, daily spending, etc or even making some huge mistakes such as tapping into their retirement.
How to start planning for college?
It’s such an overwhelming thought to begin any sort of college savings plan because there are so many different options out there. Even if you’re fairly savvy with your finances, there are still a lot of factors to consider. Fortunately, there are lots of resources available for parents to help you get started planning for college. COUNTRY Financial has local representatives that you can easily contact to help you learn about these resources and find the best options for your family. To get started, just visit www.countryfinancial.com/simplesteps and get a head start on saving for your child’s future!
Disclosure: This post has been sponsored by COUNTRY Financial. As always, all opinions are mine alone.
SEE ALSO: Teaching Kids the Value of Money
This is great information. In my opinion, it’s never too early to start planning for college. It’s so expensive. And I have THREE kids!
We’re already saving for college for all three – THREE – of our kids. I don’t even want to think about what it’s going to cost. But I have to… LOL
I would venture to say it’s never too soon to start saving for college, if it’s financially feasible. Great post, concerning this.
It helps so much to get started as early as possible. Just knowing you’re saving up as you go takes a lot of the stress away!
As a parent of a kid who is a freshman in college, it is never too soon to start planning for college. I wish we had started many years ago.
I am going to say that it is never too soon to start planning for college savings. I think that the cost of college rising so much, many families should try their best to prepare as early as possible.
Our kids had some medical issues so we were delayed in the savings but better late than never right?
I have one in college right now and another one next fall. It’s really important that we save as much as we can as early as possible. The tuition fees right now are ridiculously high!
It is never too early to plan for college and start saving. It is so expensive and a plan for saving is a great idea.
Oh my gosh. I wish we would have started to save much earlier. Thankfully, my son’s schooling is paid for through the military but our daughter will be starting soon and we don’t have quite enough to pay for it.
I just had my second baby, and we have been talking about starting a college account for him. It is NEVER too early. I know I will be paying off my own loans for a few years, and I don’t want my kids to be strapped with that burden. I will have to check out Country Financial.
My son is in college right now. I agree that it is never too early to start saving.
It took me some time to finish off my college loans! I think it’s really important to save as early as you can for your kids. Tuition these days are no joke!
These are awesome tips! It’s never too early to save for college. Such a great reminder for parents.
We just started saving for our kids college, I don’t think its ever too soon either. These are great tips!
I started when my son was 1 and my daughter was 6 years old. I saved all their tuition in a college fund. My daughter is in her third year at FIU and my son will be headed there in a few years. All fully paid for from their college funds
I bet if Country Financial was around when I was growing up my parents would of did it. Trust me Student loans are no jokes so its never too early to plan!