How much to save for college - child is in 10th grade

[Anonymous]

Op none knows until your kid gets into a college and accepts. Do you think your child might attend grad school? One option is save post tax and not in the 529, since at this point you will be looking at less of a tax benefit.

[Anonymous]

“Well, there is the answer. It isn’t so much that colleges in the US are expensive, so much as they are carefully designed to extract the maximum possible wealth from American parents, playing on their fears of downward mobility.”

True dat.

And yet, my expensive private school education allowed me to understand that having family values for quality education does not make one a “financial idiot,” especially if the cost of tuition is a fraction of the family income. So maybe there is something to be said about, ya know, actually getting an education. As opposed to merely a college degree.

[Anonymous]

“Well, there is the answer. It isn’t so much that colleges in the US are expensive, so much as they are carefully designed to extract the maximum possible wealth from American parents, playing on their fears of downward mobility.”

Indeed! ^
But I know I'm falling into that trap. NP here. It's hard for me to come to grips with the idea that my kid won't be able to go to a school that costs as much as the private college I went to ... even though we have higher incomes than my parents did and we've saved since before my HS freshman was born. I definitely feel sticker shock as I realize that the $150k I've saved is only two years of college. Do people actually pay that much?
There must be other options for people who want a bright honors (but not straight A) student to have small class sizes and a school that emphasizes learning. I can't imagine paying $75k/year but do you have to be a perfect student athlete with some unique talent to get merit aid at, say, a top-50 college? I would love to have some names of colleges that offer at least some kind of break for smart kids who aren't perfect, or colleges whose regular tuition rates are less expensive than you'd expect despite very high academic expectations and small classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

“Well, there is the answer. It isn’t so much that colleges in the US are expensive, so much as they are carefully designed to extract the maximum possible wealth from American parents, playing on their fears of downward mobility.”

Indeed! ^
But I know I'm falling into that trap. NP here. It's hard for me to come to grips with the idea that my kid won't be able to go to a school that costs as much as the private college I went to ... even though we have higher incomes than my parents did and we've saved since before my HS freshman was born. I definitely feel sticker shock as I realize that the $150k I've saved is only two years of college. Do people actually pay that much?
There must be other options for people who want a bright honors (but not straight A) student to have small class sizes and a school that emphasizes learning. I can't imagine paying $75k/year but do you have to be a perfect student athlete with some unique talent to get merit aid at, say, a top-50 college? I would love to have some names of colleges that offer at least some kind of break for smart kids who aren't perfect, or colleges whose regular tuition rates are less expensive than you'd expect despite very high academic expectations and small classes.

Look to liberal arts colleges in the midwest that are in the 30-80 range in USNews Liberal arts college rankings (e.g. Denison, Wooster, Kalamazoo, St. Olaf). They have high sticker prices but are known for merit aid more widely--and for offering high quality, personalized education. Check endowments and financial ratings to make sure they are stable (all the ones I mentioned are--and are known for really fostering students' development/intellectual growth).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t this country address the cost bubble in education?

Europe has small universities in terms of physical campus; the good schools there turn out equal or better to us schools.

Because European universities focus on teaching and learning, not all that bureacratic/ political stuff they do here employing armies of useless folks.

My son is going to engineering school in Germany for very little money. Not only that, but the campus are not flashy. A ton of money is not being sunk into ostentatious buildings and grounds. You are there to learn, not to admire architecture, not to party, not to grow up, and not to find yourself. It is very utilitarian and he is getting a great education despite not having access to a beautiful gym and millions of dollars in athletic fields and structures. They do not even have team sports. Any idea what a drag these athletic programs and award willing architectural buildings have on the cost to run a school? It is insane. He goes to school basically in what looks like an office building. Also there is no campus housing. That is not a thing.

This is great! Does he have a german language background? Are classes in german or english?

[Anonymous]

I'd put aside every penny you could, but NOT in a 529 plan if it's so late.
The first year or so, pay as much as you can without touching the 529. That way, if they need to do summer school or an extra semester, you have that tucked away in a fund. Once you know they are on track to finish, use the 529

[Anonymous]

You are getting g a lot of varied advice here.
My input is different: my hat is off to you for saving as much as you have. Incredible job! You have gotten so far to this point that keeping up what you have been doing and exploring various ways to finance the rest of what you might need should be doable - and a lot depends on where your child ends up going to school and what assistance if any they might offer.
But, again, my main point here is to say way to go!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t this country address the cost bubble in education?

Europe has small universities in terms of physical campus; the good schools there turn out equal or better to us schools.

Because European universities focus on teaching and learning, not all that bureacratic/ political stuff they do here employing armies of useless folks.

My son is going to engineering school in Germany for very little money. Not only that, but the campus are not flashy. A ton of money is not being sunk into ostentatious buildings and grounds. You are there to learn, not to admire architecture, not to party, not to grow up, and not to find yourself. It is very utilitarian and he is getting a great education despite not having access to a beautiful gym and millions of dollars in athletic fields and structures. They do not even have team sports. Any idea what a drag these athletic programs and award willing architectural buildings have on the cost to run a school? It is insane. He goes to school basically in what looks like an office building. Also there is no campus housing. That is not a thing.

Does your son speak German?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“Well, there is the answer. It isn’t so much that colleges in the US are expensive, so much as they are carefully designed to extract the maximum possible wealth from American parents, playing on their fears of downward mobility.”

True dat.

And yet, my expensive private school education allowed me to understand that having family values for quality education does not make one a “financial idiot,” especially if the cost of tuition is a fraction of the family income. So maybe there is something to be said about, ya know, actually getting an education. As opposed to merely a college degree.

There is no exceptional ROI in an "expensive private school education" this is why my DTI is sitting at 8% for a SFH in NoVA and I haven't had debt in my life other than a mortgage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

“Well, there is the answer. It isn’t so much that colleges in the US are expensive, so much as they are carefully designed to extract the maximum possible wealth from American parents, playing on their fears of downward mobility.”

Indeed! ^
But I know I'm falling into that trap. NP here. It's hard for me to come to grips with the idea that my kid won't be able to go to a school that costs as much as the private college I went to ... even though we have higher incomes than my parents did and we've saved since before my HS freshman was born. I definitely feel sticker shock as I realize that the $150k I've saved is only two years of college. Do people actually pay that much?
There must be other options for people who want a bright honors (but not straight A) student to have small class sizes and a school that emphasizes learning. I can't imagine paying $75k/year but do you have to be a perfect student athlete with some unique talent to get merit aid at, say, a top-50 college? I would love to have some names of colleges that offer at least some kind of break for smart kids who aren't perfect, or colleges whose regular tuition rates are less expensive than you'd expect despite very high academic expectations and small classes.

You need to adjust your expectations and get comfortable with a non-brand-name school.

Many of us who went to elite schools do not pay that much. Our kids go to in-state public, or to private schools with merit aid.

Happy to share names of colleges if you provide your kid's stats (approximate) and whether you want a large state school, a LAC, or something in between.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t this country address the cost bubble in education?

Europe has small universities in terms of physical campus; the good schools there turn out equal or better to us schools.

Because of financial idiots, raising more financial idiots like the OP.

Nice. Seems like the OP has saved $175k for her son. I'm gonna guess she's not an idiot. I don't have nearly that much saved and I can say that I'm not an idiot.

But yet, she has to consult with the peanut gallery on DCUM to ask if that 175K is enough. She somehow saved 175k and doesn't know how to figure that out?

Making money and being intelligent are not always the same thing. I don't consider our president the brightest bulb and yet not only is he more wealthy than the OP (and based on your assessment, must be a genius) he made it to the highest office in the US. A blind squirrel does sometimes get a nut.

OP here. Question was more crowd-surfing about the how are we set for now (with 2.5 years to go). It wasn't how much more will I have to pay to hit the approx $300k cost of college. Our HHI is very high, very high 6 figures. So paying as we go, won't be an issue. Question was more: is this enough to have specifically funded in the 529 vs. other savings vehicles. Interesting responses all around though.

You probably should have been more specific with your question. If I were you, I wouldn't put any more in a 529 (maybe other than to max out the state tax deductions). The tax benefits for appreciation are more limited at this point, and your kid may decide to go to a state school, get merit aid, etc. So unless they go to graduate school, you may get stuck with $$ that you need to transfer to someone else. You can always "launder" the max deduction amount through the 529 while they're in school, as well.

[Anonymous]

What the heck? You don't need to save up these ridiculous amounts. Your kid doesn't need to go to a $75k/year school smh.

[Anonymous]

“There is no exceptional ROI in an "expensive private school education" this is why my DTI is sitting at 8% for a SFH in NoVA and I haven't had debt in my life other than a mortgage.“

ROI? My ability to think critically, reason, write, speak and argue effectively is my ROI. This benefits me when I do my taxes, make investment decisions, vote. It benefits me when I network and interview for jobs. It benefits me when I take my work and expand it, resulting in raises and bonuses. And when I enjoy what life has to offer rather than constantly calculating whether I’m getting the best ROI.

[Anonymous]

Don't forget that some states have in-state tuition reciprocity with other states for certain programs of study. It's a good way to save some money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Omg this is nuts. College is ridiculously expensive now.

It really isn’t unless you are paying full freight at a really expensive school. My son is senior applying to a combination of public and privates. The publics are about $25k/year all in and the public offered enough merit aid to bring those costs down either below the public schools or within $5-10k of them. He isn’t an incredible student.