Consider Community College: A lower-cost community college can take care of your child’s general education requirements. If the college is near your home, your child can continue living with you and this will help you save a substantial amount. This will also give you two more years to save more money. Encourage your child to get a part-time job, as well, and help you with the cost of their degree. This will impress upon them the importance of their degree since they will also spend their own money on it.

Try Prepaid Tuition Plans:  A prepaid college tuition plan is a good alternative to standard fixed-rate accounts because it grows at the same rate as the tuition rises. This plan can lead to better returns than the 1-2% rates offered by some money market and CD accounts. Some states also offer tax deduction or credit to parents that contribute to these plans. If you need professional financial planning advice to see if these plans are a good fit for you, give us a call.

Use Your Life Insurance:  While it’s typically considered a bad idea for older parents to use a life insurance policy as a short-term savings vehicle for college tuition, if you own a cash value or whole life insurance policy then you can consider taking money from it. However, you need to talk to a professional financial planner to determine if this makes financial sense for you and your family.