With a new baby, WOW has my life changed. and its only been a week. I have already caught up on: TV and School and still have to catch up on sleeping and saving money.
That last part is a little difficult with the holidays rolling around, but fortunately I’ve become a homebody and refuse to leave Baby B with Granny for more than, oh say 30 minutes at a time. Therefore my random Target visits are reduced a great amount- yay for no spending!
My parents were pretty good at saving money, especially for school. They put away a decent amount of money to pay for my college, and it has been more than helpful to me, even if some of it had to be spent on other things. It was money put aside for tuition and other living expenses, and I’m so thankful to have that. It’s one thing I’d like to have for my son, so he doesn’t have to choose a college based on the money. Unfortunately, I’m terrible with money- both the spending and the saving aspects of it.
The Huffington Post has a great article on Genworth’s list of financial resources that talks about saving money for college and retirement. According to the article, college costs are increasing faster than inflation and can run up to $150,000 for four years of school. Some of my favorite tips from the article include:
*starting as early as possible- The sooner you start saving the more money you will have saved by the time you need it. Plain and simple., and
*encouraging your child to graduate early. Not necessarily easy to do, but by taking Advanced Placement course that get college credit, you’re getting ahead of the game. Taking more AP classes and exams is something I wished I had done. If your child’s school has AP or other college credit course programs, definitely give them a try!
Another tip that I have utilized in my own college career is taking courses at a local community college to save some money on the course fees. It was really helpful in my in between time of transferring from a big fancy private college to a local state school. I was able to knock out more General Education requirements for a small fraction of the price of the semesters tuition at the state school.
One thing is certain: if I’m going to be able to afford this baby, I’m going to need to save up some money. Ok. So easier said than done, right?
What are some ways you have saved money for either retirement or school for your kids or even just for rainy day funds?
Information contributed by Genworth Financial.
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