Ins and Outs of 529 Plans

ins and outs of 529 plans

Ins and Outs of 529 Plans

What is the Money Date? A weekly time to check in. 3 things we review and update: 
1. Spending 
2. Earning 
3. Savings

Review of all 529 plan options

  • Top plans
  • Your state vs other plans?
  • Fees vs Performance

 

Best Low Fees: Utah (My529) – Vanguard investments

Best portfolios of underlying funds: The pre-fab portfolios offered by 529 plans are only as good as their underlying mutual funds. That’s why we like the Maryland College Investment Plan.

Best plan for conservative investors: The Michigan Educational Savings Program, run by TIAA-CREF, is ideal for investors who shy away from putting their college savings into the stock market. The plan has a savings option that guarantees principal and a minimum annual interest rate based on a Treasury note index. Those options cost a very low flat fee of 0.45% annually.

Best mix of investment choices: For do-it-yourself investors who want to build their own portfolio, the College Savings Plan of Nebraska offers a selection of 20 funds from American Century, Fidelity, PIMCO, and Vanguard.

Quick note: Changes to 529s with the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017. You can now use up to $10K of 529 money for K-12 tuition-related expenses per year.

 

Anna Sergunina
Anna Sergunina
anna@mainstreetplanning.com

I passionately believe that in order to live a life of fulfillment and joy, we must genuinely serve each other in any way possible. I found my mission in life to serve others via financial planning. Anna regularly writes about personal finance. Her work appears on Business Insider, Nasdaq, Nerdwallet, among others. Anna is the creator of Money Flow system.

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