Thursday, May 29, 2014

Happy AR529 Day!

Are your kids going to college?

How about your grandkids, nieces, nephews, all those youngins running around the family reunion?

Do you know how they are going to pay for it?

Sure they’ve got options. Scholarships, student loans, generous gifts from relatives. If they reside in the great state of Arkansas they also have the 529 Program to help out.

Before yesterday, I had heard about the 529 Program in passing but never really learned exactly how it worked. After my visit to the gorgeous estate of P.Allen Smith, I now know that it is possible for my children to graduate college debt free.

But first, let me lure you in with photos of Moss Mountain Farm.

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Whoa. Right?

It was a pleasure to spend a few hours on this working farm full of animals and plants. The gardens are teaching gardens, designed to inspire and preserve heirlooms. The architecture and design are stunning. The grounds warm and inviting. We were treated to lunch before listening to a panel discussion regarding the Arkansas 529 Program.

Some things I took away from the discussion were:

Student loan deficit is in the trillions.

Nearly 4 out of 10 parents are not saving for their children’s education.

The cost of higher education is only going up!

There are four different levels of investment in AR529. Something for everyone!

The editor of Arkansas Business says you can’t save too much or too early!

Every dollar you save for college is going to earn money; every dollar you borrow will cost you.

You can transfer your beneficiary to your other children or grandchildren.

The UGift program enables anyone to contribute to your child’s 529 account.

You can use 529 to send your kids to virtually any college in the country.

They have 1 to 1 or 2 to 2 matching on 529 contributions up to $500 depending on income.

A child with a dedicated savings plan is 4 times more likely to finish college.

And those are just my notes (aka Twitter)!

 

According to the 529 Program literature you can:

- Deduct up to $5000 of your contributions from you AR adjusted gross income

- Maximize savings with tax-deferred growth and tax- free qualified withdrawals

- Enroll with as little as $10 per month with an automatic investment plan

- Use the money to pay for tuition, books, room and board, etc.

Want to know how and where to sign up or just need more information?

Visit The Gift Plan or call 501-682-1415

And right now the people over at the 529 Program are doing something awesome and giving away $529! Just click on over to their site to find out how to enter.

It’s never too late to start saving for your children's future!

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for sharing the information and the pictures. It looks like a beautiful place.

    ReplyDelete

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