Reply to Does everyone on here with kids applying to top 50 schools really have the $80K per year to spend?

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Reply to "Does everyone on here with kids applying to top 50 schools really have the $80K per year to spend?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]You had 18 years to save. Plus cash flow some now. What have you been doing all this time? You knew this expense was coming.[/quote]

What I’ve run across is people who assume state school will be as affordable as it was for their parents, coupled with some magical thinking that their DC will be the one to receive scholarships.

It would be better to understand sooner, but these are often households that can cash flow 30K for in state tuition.

But the flip side families spending willy nilly on private school, big houses, vacations, they do know what college costs and do tend to pay when the time comes.  There’s some myth around here that these are the families posting, not IME.[/quote]

If you have kids, shouldn't you know what college costs?  Or do you assume you are going to be getting handouts?  Most of us can not afford the latter.

I have never heard of a top school offering merit scholarships - some kids attend where they are accepted. Period. Which is fine, but don't try to tell people that they are attending because of scholarships that don't exist. [/quote]

It’s crazy to me, but I think some parents really don’t know. I think it doesn’t seem important when kids are toddlers and then during school they always think “next year” they will deal with it and then time flies. In an area where so many people worry about activities and sports in preparation for college apps at such a young age, it’s hard to believe. And yet! I’ve seen parents post in my neighborhood FB group at the end of junior year asking about college tours and expressing shock at the cost of even local schools. My friend is a college counselor and she said even in Arlington / McLean / Falls Church she meets families who live in $2-3M houses who just didn’t plan or think about college at all until she gets a panicked call.

I had loans (a whopping $20k at 2% that I refinanced to nearly 0%). I think other parents of my generation may have experience the same and think “I had loans and it wasn’t so bad!” [/quote]

Yes, I commented above, and this was my observation, too. (Our household is most the way through paying for college, so not explaining my own mindset.) I think the head in the sand, it will all work out approach, is more common in public schools. At least the private parents have been trained to write checks, and they know it will be bigger checks when college hits.[/quote]

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