Anonymous wrote:$20,000/year from your 529
$30,000 parent cashflow (from a $400,000 HHI is not unreasonable)
$15,000/ from parent savings
$ 5,500/year student loan
$ 5,000/year student earnings (summer and school year)

$75,000/year

Take the $30,000/year needed from cash flow from the parent getting the $60,000 bonus.

Yes, the years where your kids are in college, you are basically working to pay for college.

$20,000/year from your 529
$30,000 parent cashflow (from a $400,000 HHI is not unreasonable)
$15,000/ from parent savings
$ 5,500/year student loan
$ 5,000/year student earnings (summer and school year)

$75,000/year

OP, this is why a lot of kids from well off families are attending state colleges, and why these colleges are getting more difficult to get into, for that matter.

You can certainly afford $30,000/year.

You have not saved enough for your kid to go to Cornell or Carnegie Mellon. It would be a mistake for you to refinance your house or liquidate your brokerage/checking/savings accounts. Don't do that.

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have any tips or recommendations for funding what will sure to be an expensive college experience for our kids?

We have two kids in high school, rising senior and rising sophomore. We’ve got $90K and $83K in 529 plans for them each, respectively. There is no chance we will qualify for need-based financial aid, even when both are in college at the same time. Several of the schools we’re contemplating are places like Cornell and Carnegie Mellon that no longer or simply don’t offer merit-based scholarships. So, we’re looking at $80K+ per year. 529 will cover about a fourth of the cost, but this is still $450K or so over 6 years. Kind of a lot to absorb as part of our monthly budget. What do most people do?

Outside, independent scholarships? Bonuses from work? Exercise stock options? Kids get student loans? Parents get loans? Refinance or second mortgage? Temporarily halt retirement contributions?

If your kids are "that" good, they can get merit aids from state flagships/lower level privates. I'd not worry. If they are not "that" good, then you got a big problem

Based on what you wrote, you can't afford Cornell or CMU unless you want to pay well over half of your post tax income in tuition

Anonymous wrote:What is your HHI and what savings do you have outside of IRAs and 401ks?

OP here. We have about $150K in taxable brokerage and checking / savings accounts accounts, but a lot of this is earmarked as our emergency savings, not that a college would care. Our house is probably worth about $1.2M and we have a mortgage with an outstanding balance of $530K. Our base HHI is $400K, with $60K in annual bonus potential. DH and I both work and he also receives monthly ISOs from his company and quarterly RSUs as well. At the current share price for his company, the quarterly RSUs are worth about $7K. The ISOs would be worth $2K per month based on the strike price, if exercised. But, these need to vest over time and who can predict the stock price? Next quarter the RSUs could be valued at $4K.

It’s what everyone else said: you need to change your scope of possible colleges. Someone is incurring a massive amount of debt or the school changes. No other way to look at it. Nothing is worth $80,000 a year if you can’t afford it.

Send your kids to an affordable college that has merit scholarship. It sounds like you cannot afford Cornell or Carnegie Mellon.

How much money do you have in non-retirement accounts?

Are you sure you won't qualify for any financial aid? Did you run some numbers in their net price calculators? When I run ours I get about $50,000 per year in costs as a very rough estimate. Still a lot of money, but better than $80K per year.
If you haven't run the numbers you might be surprised.

What is your HHI and what savings do you have outside of IRAs and 401ks?

OP, you are looking at this all wrong. Your child does not have attend a school that costs $80,000 per year, and won't get a better education just because of a higher price tag.

Have your child attend a public college, or a college where they will receive merit aid.

Have an honest conversation with your DCs on what you’re willing to pay, if anything, above their 529.

Your not going to like my answer, but early on DH and I discussed what we were willing to contribute and we saved accordingly. Both DCs (middle school and high school) know what we’re willing to pay and our expectations so there are no surprises.

Does anyone have any tips or recommendations for funding what will sure to be an expensive college experience for our kids?

We have two kids in high school, rising senior and rising sophomore. We’ve got $90K and $83K in 529 plans for them each, respectively. There is no chance we will qualify for need-based financial aid, even when both are in college at the same time. Several of the schools we’re contemplating are places like Cornell and Carnegie Mellon that no longer or simply don’t offer merit-based scholarships. So, we’re looking at $80K+ per year. 529 will cover about a fourth of the cost, but this is still $450K or so over 6 years. Kind of a lot to absorb as part of our monthly budget. What do most people do?

Outside, independent scholarships? Bonuses from work? Exercise stock options? Kids get student loans? Parents get loans? Refinance or second mortgage? Temporarily halt retirement contributions?