One Mom Shares 5 Ways to Save for College

HomeFinanceCollege SavingsOne Mom Shares 5 Ways to Save for CollegeThis page may contain affiliate links.Dec 4, 2019 Were always looking for ways to save for college. After all, the cost of college keeps going up. Over in our Paying For College 101 Facebook group, you can find great discussions about the most helpful things you can do to save money for college. One mom in the group even listed out some of the most effective saving for college tips she has — and two of her children have already been to college and a third will be going soon. If you want to find the money to set aside in a savings account or in a 529 plan, here are seven things you can do: 1. Stop Paying for Cable TV We have not paid for TV for years, says the mom, who asked to remain anonymous. None of my kids even watch traditional TV anymore. They get local stations with the help of a digital antenna, and they can stream Netflix and Amazon Prime free through their cell phone service. If youre still using cable or satellite TV, you could save as much as $100 — or more — per month. 2. Comparison Shop I hit many stores for the best deal, and use the app Flipp to find out whats on sale. This mom also shops at Aldi and other discount stores. By looking for the best deals on what her family needs, its possible to save on just about everything. And, of course, once you realize the savings, you can bank them. Ways to save for college can present themselves every time you save a few bucks on things you normally buy. 3. Drive Cars Until They Die Rather than buying new cars every few years, this mom buys inexpensive vehicles and drives them as long as possible. They did recently by a 2017 car, but it was a base-model Camry designed to be inexpensive and last a long time. There are five drivers in the household, so sharing the cars is important. Being able to buy cars and drive them for a long time also allows the family to avoid making big car payments. Plus, choosing cars that are inexpensive to insure can go a long way toward offering monthly savings. Convert those savings into an opportunity to build up a college account. 4. Sticking with a Starter Home We never got any farther than just thinking about moving up, says the mom. We dont need anything bigger. Rather than getting stuck in a cycle of selling a home and then upgrading, this family lives simply in a 1,200 square foot home. While there is a mortgage on the home, the savings are huge because the home is so inexpensive. The small mortgage payments allow for plenty of cash flow that can be used for other things — like finding ways to save for college 5. Smart Credit Card Use Credit card rewards and travel hacking also figure into the college savings plan. By buying only what is already in the budget, its possible to earn credit card rewards. The key is paying off the balance each month so that credit card interest doesnt cut into those rewards. By only using credit cards to spend on budgeted items, its possible to save money in other ways, including paying less for travel or getting cash back. One of the most helpful things to save money for college is to take your cash back from credit card rewards and bank it for the future. Or, if youre travel hacking, take the money you save and put it toward college savings. Another strategy is to use credit card rewards that offer college savings benefits. The Upromise program takes a portion of your purchases and sets them aside for college. You can even arrange to have those savings automatically transferred to a 529 plan so it can grow Balance in Your Life Can Be One of the Best Ways to Save for College These saving for college tips all have something in common: balance. Even if you dont think youve saved enough for college, there are things you can do. We live pretty simply, says this mom. I dont need fancy anything, so that helps. She and her husband are able to save a bit for retirement and have used 529 plans. Not only that, but they look at the schools themselves, targeting schools that offer need-based programs and help students pay for college. They offer the best value for our family. By focusing on schools that are less expensive and have generous financial aid packages, its possible to stretch the college savings even further. In the end, you dont need to have a ton of money to successfully save for college. Use a saving for college calculator to figure out how much you might need to save, and then create a plan. Pay attention to how you can save a little bit each month and put that aside for college. As your account grows, and as you make saving for college a priority, you might be surprised at how you can help your kids pay for a great start in life — without going into a ton of debt.

United States Markets Essay [ Free Example ]

United States Markets Essay Essay Prompt Consider the following. The theory of market efficiency is based on the premise that a market is considered efficient when stock prices are an actual reflection of information known about a company. U.S. markets are generally viewed as semi-strong form market efficient. †¢What would happen if U.S. markets became less efficient? †¢What might lead to markets becoming less efficient? †¢How do markets in other countries compare to the U.S. in terms of efficiency? The efficient market hypothesis is based on the idea that a market is regarded efficient when stock prices are the true reflection of a companys financial information and status. While this concept/theory has been under academic and professional consideration for several years, its an underlying assumption across several financial models. The theory of market efficiency is used to determine or understand the strength and status of a nations economy. Through this theory, an economy can examine how its market compares with other countries with regards to efficiency. Based on information shown in market prices or stock prices, market efficiency is classified into three i.e. weak, semi-strong, and strong. In light of the theory of market efficiency, United States markets are generally considered as semi-strong form market efficient. Generally, semi-strong market efficiency is where the present stock prices are reflections of historical prices and all present publicly available information. This information includes changes in accounting policy, announcements of acquisitions, and dividend payouts (Degutis Novickyte, 2014, p.8). In this regard, U.S. stock prices are actual reflection of historical prices and all current publicly available information. If the U.S. markets became less efficient, the nations economy would experience significant challenges that hinder economic growth. First, if the U.S. markets became less efficient, it would fundamentally change the perception that the country is a financially safe haven. The United States has been renowned as a financially safe haven, which has made it benefit tremendously by generating economic exceptionalism. A change in perception would damage the countrys economic growth and development by making her become less attractive. Secondly, if U.S. markets became less efficient, it would be difficult to attract investors because of increase in interest rates and costs of borrowing as well as slow investment and consumption that will damage the economy (Schuman, 2011). Third, the nations currency would weaken, which would in turn undermine the value of currency reserves across the globe. This implies that the country would face slow economic growth, deteriorating living standards, and s lower growth of global economy because of Americas status as world super power. There are several factors that could make a semi-strong or strong efficient market become weak or less efficient. For the United States markets, one of the factors that could make it become less efficient is inability of the stock market to mobilize adequate investment in corporate growth and innovation (Burgess, Grant Demos, 2011). Generally, stock markets play a crucial role in economic growth through channeling individuals wealth to businesses that need money to expand. An unprecedented slowdown in companies that list publicly on stock markets would affect the ability of these markets to mobilize sufficient investment that stimulates economic growth. Secondly, U.S. markets could become less efficient because of increased unemployment, which is one of the major factors that hinder or affect economic growth. The absence of adequate investment in the market generates increased unemployment that in turn raises the standards of living. Third, the U.S. markets could become less efficie nt if the economies of other countries are better. In this case, more investors are likely to invest in other countries or economies, which would in turn affect U.S. economy. In terms of efficiency, the markets in the United States seem to be performing better than markets in other countries. Markets in the U.S. are stronger than markets in developing countries, which are largely weak. In addition to being stronger than markets in developing countries, U.S. markets are much better than many markets in Europe. However, these markets have experienced significant competition in terms of efficiency from some markets in Europe and in Asia, especially markets in China. References Burgess, K., Grant, J. Demos, T. (2011, November 13). A Market Less Efficient. Financial Times. Retrieved October 3, 2016, from https://www.ft.com/content/f80462a0-0c7f-11e1-88c6-00144feabdc0 Degutis, A. Novickyte, L. (2014). The Efficient Market Hypothesis: A Critical Review of Literature and Methodology. Ekonomika, 93(2), 7-23. Retrieved from http://www.zurnalai.vu.lt/files/journals/37/articles/3549/public/7-23.pdf Schuman, M. (2011, April 19). What the U.S. Debt Problem Means for the Global Economy. Time. Retrieved October 3, 2016, from http://business.time.com/2011/04/19/what-americas-debt-problem-means-for-the-global-economy/ View or Download this full document in (.docx) format. --> Open Full Document Open full document and source list OR Order A Custom Written Essay Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic