Estimate college costs; prepare for the unexpected

As you figure out how much money to save for a college education, it might feel like there are many questions to consider. How much money should you save from each paycheck? What about the difference in cost between a university in a large city and attending college in a small town? What if your student chooses not to attend a traditional college program? And what happens if your student earns a scholarship?

my529, Utah’s educational savings plan, offers a helpful College Savings Estimator tool to help give you a better idea of how your contributions might grow over time in a 529 account.

• How much money should you save from each paycheck? Regardless of your student’s age or grade, the estimator allows you the ability to enter a variety of possibilities to help you decide how much to set aside to meet your savings goal for future expenses.

• What about the difference in cost between a university in a large city and a college in a small town? The estimator allows you to estimate these costs by entering basic information (location, beneficiary’s grade, current savings, and monthly contribution), and then selecting a college or average cost. You can explore multiple possibilities by switching the variables. A great feature of the estimator is that you can save previous scenarios and make different selections as many times as you wish.

• What if my student chooses not to attend a traditional college program? The funds in your my529 account can be used at many types of eligible educational institutions, including technical colleges. my529 funds may also be used for registered apprenticeship programs.

• What happens if your student earns a scholarship? Even if tuition is covered, some qualified education expenses may not be covered by a scholarship. Your my529 account can be used to help with the costs of many qualified education expenses like books, computers, software and more, that might not be covered by their scholarship.

Whatever your circumstance, the earlier you begin saving, the more potential your my529 account has to grow.

Important Legal Notice

Investing is an important decision. The investments in your account may vary with market conditions and could lose value. Carefully read the Program Description in its entirety for more information and consider all investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses before investing. For a copy of the Program Description, call 800.418.2551 or visit my529.org.

Investments in my529 are not insured or guaranteed by my529, the Utah Board of Higher Education, the Utah Higher Education Assistance Authority Board of Directors, any other state or federal agency, or any third party. However, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insurance is provided for the FDIC-Insured investment option. In addition, my529 offers investment options that are partially insured for the portion of the respective investment option that includes FDIC-insured accounts as an underlying investment.

The state in which you or your beneficiary pay taxes or live may offer a 529 plan that provides state tax or other benefits, such as financial aid, scholarship funds and protection from creditors, not otherwise available to you by investing in my529. You should consider such benefits, if any, before investing in my529.my529 does not provide legal, financial, investment or tax advice. You should consult your own tax or legal advisor to determine the effect of federal and state tax laws on your particular situation.

A great feature of the estimator is that you can save previous scenarios and make different selections as many times as you wish.