No 529 for us. We own 2 companies and itemize everything on our taxes so it's not a major win for us on the Virginia income tax aspect of funding it that way. We have college and grad school paid for from real estate income on a fully paid off property. DH has looked at the 529 and analyzed the cost/benefit to our situation and it's not worth it for us. We have significant tangible assets, as well as retirement accounts. DH isn't a gambler and doesn't like how the market takes crazy dips and turns. Our $7 million in assets are 20% stocks and bonds, plus $5 million in various real estate holdings. It won't dent our yearly HHI to pay for college and grad school.

Anonymous wrote:Early 40s w kids under 5. If we had to, we could cash flow college based on our current salaries. Barring random disaster, if we don’t up our lifestyle, should we feel pretty ok that we could cash flow college in 14 or so years? Don’t expect huge salary growth but prob like 2 to 3 pct per year. PITI should stay same. I know college costs have outpaced inflation but hope they won’t go too much out of control.

If you don’t have the discipline to save for college now, I highly doubt you have the discipline to not “up your lifestyle.”

College costs have plateaued a bit from their skyrocketing pace (even more so if you look at actual paid cost after tuition discounts/merit aid awards etc.) Demographics are also shifting so that there will be fewer college-aged students for the next decade or so at least. If you can cash flow college now I think you can assume you'll likely be able to cash flow it in the future. That said, there are tax advantages to 529 plans that make sense for people who have high enough incomes to cash flow college costs.

Anyone not taking advantage of a 529 is just stupid. I don't care what your financial situation is.

Are you asking if you can skip saving for college because your current income is high enough that you could pay for college costs each semester if they were in college now?

If so, hell no.

Sounds like you already have a decent amount saved in a 529. If you are worried, put more in a UGTM account for your kids. If they need more college money they can use that. If they don’t it can be their seed money for life/wedding/house etc.

Anonymous wrote:We save because we don’t want to work forever and will most likely retire and start traveling a lot more by the time they start college.

+1. We retired and it’s nice that DC has his college paid for.

I would save because you never know what could happen. No guarantee you'll be able to continue working at current salary into your 60s. My dad got laid off in his mid-50s when I was in college and never got a job at his level again. Now I have one in college and one HS senior and 60 yr old DH got laid off in the Fall (works in IT). We're fine because we can live comfortably on my salary and we have both kids' college fully funded in their 529s (one at an in state public U + senior planning on a LAC w/ merit).

Anonymous wrote:First I wouldn’t count on it— college tuition inflation has been much more than 2-3% a year, altho who knows how long they can keep that or what happens over the next 10 years.

Second, how you can be in a position to cash flow tuition now and not be able to/want to save in a 529? That sort of boggles the mind.

With regard to whether the rate of cost increases will continue, who knows but everyone was saying the same thing when our oldest was a baby (that the rate of college cost increases was unsustainable) but here we are 17 years later and it has not abated. We saved about have and will be cashflowing half starting next year. Very happy we saved and continue to save.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Early 40s w kids under 5. If we had to, we could cash flow college based on our current salaries. Barring random disaster, if we don’t up our lifestyle, should we feel pretty ok that we could cash flow college in 14 or so years? Don’t expect huge salary growth but prob like 2 to 3 pct per year. PITI should stay same. I know college costs have outpaced inflation but hope they won’t go too much out of control.

So you are very old parents being in your 40s with kids under 5. You will be old when they are in college. Don’t you think you might want to slow down at that point with work? At your ages kids are going wear you out and grind you down. Save now while you have the energy because tick tock you are on the clock.

+1. Too many unknowns with potential job loss or health issues

Anonymous wrote:Early 40s w kids under 5. If we had to, we could cash flow college based on our current salaries. Barring random disaster, if we don’t up our lifestyle, should we feel pretty ok that we could cash flow college in 14 or so years? Don’t expect huge salary growth but prob like 2 to 3 pct per year. PITI should stay same. I know college costs have outpaced inflation but hope they won’t go too much out of control.

So you are very old parents being in your 40s with kids under 5. You will be old when they are in college. Don’t you think you might want to slow down at that point with work? At your ages kids are going wear you out and grind you down. Save now while you have the energy because tick tock you are on the clock.