Aim to Save for a Third of Your Child’s College to Spread Out Costs

College gets more expensive every year, making it difficult to save enough to pay for your kid's entire education. Instead, set your savings goal at one third of what you think their higher education costs will be so that you're prepared to cover at least that much by the time they leave for school.

In a post in Money, Mark Kantrowitz explains where the other two thirds comes from:

Try to save a third of your kids' expected college costs by the time they're on campus. The next third can come from income (plus grants and scholarships) at the time tuition needs to be paid, and the final third you or your kid can borrow.

Obviously it's best to pay all at once, but if that isn't possible, this is a good goal to shoot for. Project tuition costs ahead to their graduation year, so that you have enough saved by the time they enter college. When your child is in their junior year of high school, start working with them to find and apply for scholarships and grants. Then, when it comes time to apply for loans, make sure to explain the impact that borrowing money will have on the future. For more details on this method, check out the full post linked below.

This Formula Can Help You Figure Out How Much to Save for College | Money

Image from Tax Credits.

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