How much to save for college
The experts will all tell you that you should begin putting away as much money as possible for your child's education - and the earlier the better. It may seem like a simple strategy, but it can potentially reduce the amount both you and your children need to borrow for future college expenses. But the question remains, how much should you be saving?
The following are three college savings calculators to help parents establish savings goals for funding college tuition costs.
- The Savings Plan Designer Chart. Here, you'll be able to see how much money you'll need to save in an interest-bearing ank account or savings fund each month in order to reach your college savings goals. It coincides with the one-third rule in that parents should try to save at least one-third of their child's projected college costs.
- Bankrate.com. This college savings calculator can help you develop or even fine-tune your college education savings plan by looking at where you may be falling short of your goals.
- Bigfuture. Here you'll find an easy-to-use calculator that considers tuition, fees, transportation, and any other expenses that you plan on covering. This will give you a realistic idea of how much you should actually be saving.
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