Paying for and saving for college - how do UMC people do it?

[Anonymous]

Cash flow an in-state

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We make a similar income to you and have been saving $1600/month ($800 per child) since they were very small. We don’t drive luxury cars or pay for fancy home remodels.

Yikes - do you save for retirement?

Of course. We have almost $2M saved in our early 40’s between retirement and taxable accounts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We did not save for kids college, prioritized our investments. We was not eligible for any financial aid with the gross income around $250,000. Both kids got full merit scholarships. There are a lot of free college options, I don't see any need to pay high $$$ for college when there are plenty free options. One kids was admitted to three Ivy league schools, chose to go to the school with full ride instead.

Really gross that you took money from another student who needed it as you were too selfish to save.

Merit scholarship is not need based scholarship, so other kids who were eligible for the same scholarship did not need these money either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We did not save for kids college, prioritized our investments. We was not eligible for any financial aid with the gross income around $250,000. Both kids got full merit scholarships. There are a lot of free college options, I don't see any need to pay high $$$ for college when there are plenty free options. One kids was admitted to three Ivy league schools, chose to go to the school with full ride instead.

Really gross that you took money from another student who needed it as you were too selfish to save.

I don’t think you understand the term “merit scholarship.”

Yes, I do. Greedy selfish parents who refuse to save a dime and can afford college.

You can send your kids to free college too, there are plenty full rides or full tuition options among top schools (not ivy leaves, but even one ivy gave us a "grant" by reducing tuition from $68k to $45k).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We did not save for kids college, prioritized our investments. We was not eligible for any financial aid with the gross income around $250,000. Both kids got full merit scholarships. There are a lot of free college options, I don't see any need to pay high $$$ for college when there are plenty free options. One kids was admitted to three Ivy league schools, chose to go to the school with full ride instead.

Really gross that you took money from another student who needed it as you were too selfish to save.

I don’t think you understand the term “merit scholarship.”

Yes, I do. Greedy selfish parents who refuse to save a dime and can afford college.

Do you understand that even if we have saved $300,000 per child, the merit scholarship still would be offered to the child and the child still would take it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's amazing how many people attack families for not saving enough, even when they're already saving hundreds or thousands a month. That's blaming the victim.

The real issue is that colleges have become predatory and too damn expense. Colleges are wasting so much money. The brand-new football stadiums, the luxury faculty lounges, all the administrative bloat. Tenured professors barely teaching because they're spending all their time on some pet social justice issue. Your tuition dollars are basically just fueling the culture wars.

Colleges are strip mining the middle class. Middle class parents should not have to basically take a vow of poverty just so that one day they can maybe send their kids to college.

Or, you do what we plan to do. Tell your kids what you can afford, which is our state school and discuss money/debt with them. They can apply out for merit aid but they know we can do $30-40K, not $80K. Agree the fancy stuff is absurd.

You might find OOS schools that aren’t any more expensive than in-state.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We did not save for kids college, prioritized our investments. We was not eligible for any financial aid with the gross income around $250,000. Both kids got full merit scholarships. There are a lot of free college options, I don't see any need to pay high $$$ for college when there are plenty free options. One kids was admitted to three Ivy league schools, chose to go to the school with full ride instead.

Really gross that you took money from another student who needed it as you were too selfish to save.

I don’t think you understand the term “merit scholarship.”

Yes, I do. Greedy selfish parents who refuse to save a dime and can afford college.

You can send your kids to free college too, there are plenty full rides or full tuition options among top schools (not ivy leaves, but even one ivy gave us a "grant" by reducing tuition from $68k to $45k).

I'd rather save and send my kid to a decent school and give them options. No, not everyone can send their kid to school for free. Just people like you who know how to manipulate the system.

[Anonymous]

Don't feel the troll, people. He or she is just riling you up!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our HHI has nearly always hovered around 90K a year, OP, but we bought individual stocks when we were young that have since matured into a double digit million portfolio. This is both our retirement AND college tuition, because we have very little in our retirement accounts (foreigners who came late to work in this country).

Everyone's path to college tuition will be different, but the common theme is awareness from birth of your kids that you need to strategize to pay for college. Our oldest is a senior, and his favorite school is 85K a year. We can afford it, thank goodness.

OMFG. Don’t advocate for stock speculation as a path to wealth. It’s great you bought Apple before the iMac, but they could easily have been the next Atari.

OP asks how people do it. People answer. Just because you don't like their replies doesn't mean you need to go on the attack. It also makes you look jealous, which is not a good look.

Since you clearly want to express yourself, please share how YOU fund your kids' colleges.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At your income level you are way behind on college and retirement savings. We are late 40s and make about $170,000 combined. We don't have "college" savings, but have put money into 401Ks and Roths. We are at $1.3 million in retirement savings and have been able to cashflow private school and now UMD college park. Since we are heading into a recession, your 529 accounts aren't going to grow as much. Be in a position to cashflow and borrow once your kids get into college. You are in the donut hole friend. You are not getting financial aid.

They are NOT a donut hole. Someone making $320K should have been able to save for both retirement and college and be well positioned at this point. Donut hole is someone making ~$125K in a HCOL area who would have struggled to save fully for college and retirement and own a home, etc. At $320K it's more about their choices that have put them in this position. You can choose the lifestyle or choose retirement/college funds or balance all three things

Have you ever heard of student loans? Have you ever heard of ...NOT MAKING THAT INCOME FOR VERY LONG? Good lord. Maybe you never went to grad school or paid off loans, but most people do - and most people don't make 320k right out of college. Good grief. NUANCE much?

+1 Or having to support aged parents or dependent siblings? Or having had to (gasp!) pay for your own college with loans that you have only recently paid off? Not everyone was born with the benefits you all were, you judgmental DCUM jerks. Take a moment and consider for a moment that not everyone has the same life you do.

People really support adult non special needs siblings instead of saving for their own kids to go to college?

When your parents are deceased and its either you foot the bill or your sibling is put into a state run system, yes. My kids can borrow money and get scholarships or go to state schools but I only have one brother, the decision is not hard. My spouse had their eyes wide open when we got married; the fact that they understood and supported this is one of the many things I love about them. My kids also understand that we make sacrifices to support their uncle.

Some people have other financial demands, like paying for long term care and/or medical care for their parents. You just never know.

You have made my point for me; not everyone has your life or your privilege. That's ok and I don't mean to suggest that you should feel guilty or apologize for your good fortune. Before you indict people you might want to just for a moment consider that you don't know them or their lives. You never really know what goes on behind closed doors and in people's bedrooms. Maybe take a second this evening to appreciate your good fortune?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is wrong with borrowing against home equity for college expenses? Student loans have higher variable rate and can’t be discharged in bankruptcy? Sure it’s better to not borrow at all but if you need cash flow, why is home equity not the best option?

No. For the same reason you should not pull money from retirement accounts to fund college. If income was insufficient to save for or cash flow college then it will not be sufficient to be able to pay off HELOC. Increasing the mortgage puts retirement in jeopardy. A student has decades to pay off loans, or can choose less expensive schools that require less debt. Parents with college age kids have much less time to pay off a mortgage. I'd suggest also that you are crazy for suggesting that parents should borrow money against a primary residence with a view to "just filing for bankruptcy" in the shadow or retirement. Once they lose the house, where are those parents going to live? Whatever it is better be cash and not require credit because your brilliant financial master plan is...bankruptcy???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We did not save for kids college, prioritized our investments. We was not eligible for any financial aid with the gross income around $250,000. Both kids got full merit scholarships. There are a lot of free college options, I don't see any need to pay high $$$ for college when there are plenty free options. One kids was admitted to three Ivy league schools, chose to go to the school with full ride instead.

Really gross that you took money from another student who needed it as you were too selfish to save.

I don’t think you understand the term “merit scholarship.”

Yes, I do. Greedy selfish parents who refuse to save a dime and can afford college.

You can send your kids to free college too, there are plenty full rides or full tuition options among top schools (not ivy leaves, but even one ivy gave us a "grant" by reducing tuition from $68k to $45k).

I'd rather save and send my kid to a decent school and give them options. No, not everyone can send their kid to school for free. Just people like you who know how to manipulate the system.

“Manipulate”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At $320k a year I don’t understand what the problem is. We earn about $150k a year and have been saving since our kids were tiny. They are now 13 and 8 and we have about $120k combined. Still not enough but much more than you have. How much are you saving a month?

I don't understand either. We make $110K and have 80K for our 13 y.o. Check your eating/activity/entertainment/vacation cost- there is probably something there you can cut out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, you’re asking how other people do it. This is my “how I’m doing it” at a fraction of your income: I did not bother with a 529 because that seemed like a luxury on a single fed salary. Instead, pre-kid, I started putting whatever I could save after funding my retirement account, into I bonds and investment accounts that would not necessarily be limited to education. Granted, I had some small seed money from parents and grandparents in those accounts, but mostly it was extra savings that I started way before I even thought about kids. By the time kid was in high school, there was enough money for state school. At that point, I adjusted my spending and cash flow and, for the last couple of year pre college, set aside enough cash in a savings account for an additional year of state school, as a cushion. In the end, my kid did not go to state school, but got enough merit aid at a private to make it only slightly more than state school. The first two years I was able to cash flow, even on my single fed salary, with some contribution from the father ( about one third; he pleads poverty even though his combined HH income is higher than mine). I didn’t have to start dipping into the investment account until junior year. At this rate, I’m not going to have to use up all the money saved, so it worked out fine not putting it in a 529.

So basically, keep putting money in the 529s, but if I can cash flow a good chunk of college, you should be able to cash flow quite a bit, if you adjust your spending during those years. Going where they get some merit aid or state schools would also help.

Saying you are a single-income fed doesn't mean much as you could be earning $50K or $250k+. If you are on the higher side, there is no reason why you couldn't save. If you can pay it out of cashflow you aren't low income and very comfortable.

No, I’m a GS professional, will never make $200k. Was a GS 14 when kid was born, moved to 15 when kid was in middle school. Comfortable, but at less than 170k until the last few years. Like I said, still a fraction of OP’s HH income.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, you’re asking how other people do it. This is my “how I’m doing it” at a fraction of your income: I did not bother with a 529 because that seemed like a luxury on a single fed salary. Instead, pre-kid, I started putting whatever I could save after funding my retirement account, into I bonds and investment accounts that would not necessarily be limited to education. Granted, I had some small seed money from parents and grandparents in those accounts, but mostly it was extra savings that I started way before I even thought about kids. By the time kid was in high school, there was enough money for state school. At that point, I adjusted my spending and cash flow and, for the last couple of year pre college, set aside enough cash in a savings account for an additional year of state school, as a cushion. In the end, my kid did not go to state school, but got enough merit aid at a private to make it only slightly more than state school. The first two years I was able to cash flow, even on my single fed salary, with some contribution from the father ( about one third; he pleads poverty even though his combined HH income is higher than mine). I didn’t have to start dipping into the investment account until junior year. At this rate, I’m not going to have to use up all the money saved, so it worked out fine not putting it in a 529.

So basically, keep putting money in the 529s, but if I can cash flow a good chunk of college, you should be able to cash flow quite a bit, if you adjust your spending during those years. Going where they get some merit aid or state schools would also help.

Saying you are a single-income fed doesn't mean much as you could be earning $50K or $250k+. If you are on the higher side, there is no reason why you couldn't save. If you can pay it out of cashflow you aren't low income and very comfortable.

No, I’m a GS professional, will never make $200k. Was a GS 14 when kid was born, moved to 15 when kid was in middle school. Comfortable, but at less than 170k until the last few years. Like I said, still a fraction of OP’s HH income.

You do have job security and pension, lot of people can’t spend all their money on kid’s colleges