May 16, 2025 • 33 mins
College Planning – As it is the time of year for high school and college graduations, Jeff
Perry and Russ Ball discuss a wide variety of topics regarding planning for college. The
conversation begins with the use of 529’s as the foundation for most families to save for
future educational expenses. Jeff outlines the basics of how a 529 plan operates and the
benefits of using one. Jeff & Russ next explore the factors that go into making the choice
of which college is right for your student. Finally, the topic of how to pay for college and
common mistakes people make in this process.
For more information or to reach TEAM AMR, click the following link:
https://www.wealthenhancement.com/s/advisor-teams/amr
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to Something More with Chris Boyd.
Chris Boyd is a certified financial planner practitioner
and senior vice president and financial advisor at
Wealth Enhancement Group, one of the nation's largest
registered investment advisors.
We call it Something More because we'd like
to talk not only about those important dollar
and cents issues, but also the quality of
life issues that make the money matters matter.
(00:22):
Here he is, your fulfillment facilitator, your partner
in prosperity, advising clients on Cape Cod and
across the country.
Here's your host, Jay Christopher Boyd.
Hello and welcome to another edition of Something
More with Chris Boyd.
My name is Jeff Perry.
Chris Boyd is at a conference this week.
So Russ Ball, my co-host today, and
(00:43):
I have the privilege of sitting in for
him.
How are you doing, Russ?
Pretty good, Jeff, pretty good.
Enjoying the spring weather out here on the
Cape?
How about you?
We were back on Cape Cod last weekend
for Mother's Day to celebrate with some friends
and family.
And half the weekend reminded me why I
moved and the other half of the weekend
reminded me, hey, this is nice sometimes.
(01:04):
Yeah, yeah, it's definitely becoming that time of
year.
So just in time for Memorial Day.
It's a beautiful time when that weather breaks
and you feel the sunshine again and the
warm weather and the ocean breeze.
And Cape Cod's a beautiful place from mid
-May to October.
Yeah, yeah, this is my first winter getting
through it up here.
(01:25):
And it was definitely an experience.
So it feels even more glorious when the
leaves start going out on the trees and
life feels really good again.
Well, speaking of different places, you just returned
from Minnesota.
You were at a conference for the Wealth
Enhancement Group.
Tell our listeners what you did there.
(01:45):
Yeah, so I was out there from Tuesday
to Thursday.
We had a next-gen conference, excuse me.
And just getting to know the company, getting
to know leadership, getting to see the Wealth
Enhancement offices, all that was really great.
And probably most of all, just meeting other
(02:06):
advisors from across the country.
I met folks from Texas, California, Florida, New
Jersey, you name it.
So I think there were about 75 advisors
from across the country that came from different
Wealth Enhancement teams.
Just doing some idea sharing and talking about
what their practices are doing and how they're
(02:29):
helping their clients.
So it was a really beneficial, really great
experience and good to finally have that actual
connection with Wealth Enhancement on the corporate side.
So really successful trip, I'd say.
Well, when we transitioned over to Wealth Enhancement,
oh, about a year and a half ago,
that was one of the primary reasons that
(02:51):
we decided that Chris Boyd and Kristen decided
to join Wealth Enhancement Group because of the
resources and the connections to other people in
it.
It comes up, I won't say every day,
but frequently where we have a unique thing
that we've never seen before in a client.
Every client is unique.
And Chris and Kristen have certainly seen practically
everything.
But sometimes you get something that's a little
(03:13):
odd or a little narrow that you haven't
dealt with and having all the resources across
the country with experts in practically every field.
Even a couple of weeks ago, we did
a podcast with an advisor from the DC
area who is a specialist because he's built
a practice being specialist on benefits of federal
(03:34):
employees, like something that we on Cape Cod
typically don't deal with.
We don't have a lot of federal employees
on Cape Cod and it's good to have
someone like him or whatever the issue is,
right?
So making those connections.
Next gen, I guess you're the next generation,
Russ.
I guess so.
I guess so.
(03:55):
But to your point, I think the other
thing I like about Wealth Enhancement broadly is
just everyone's so willing to help and be
a resource.
I think not just on the corporate side,
but other teams, we have these email groups
that we're talking to other advisors about different
ideas and doing that idea sharing and everyone's
(04:16):
always so responsive and ready to jump on
and help out.
So I think that's a really useful part
of the Wealth Enhancement infrastructure.
I agree.
It doesn't feel corporate.
It feels still like a team, like a
smaller environment because you're only dealing with certain
individuals or certain teams on any given subject.
It's not the corporate structure that's weighing you
(04:38):
down and filling out forms all day or
whatever the case might be.
Exactly.
Well, speaking of next generations, I think it's
the perfect segue.
I'm going to a graduation, my granddaughter's graduation
party coming back in Massachusetts for the first
weekend, the second weekend of June.
So speaking of next generations, right?
(05:01):
And so there's high school students all over
the state, country, graduating and deciding what to
do next job, entering the job force, going
in the military, going to college, trade schools,
whatever it is.
And there's just as many probably, or a
few less, obviously, who are graduating from college
(05:21):
and going to grad school, going into the
workforce.
So in the spirit of all this changes
that is going on, I think it's good
to talk about during this episode is to
cover some of the basics of college planning.
Our family has done a lot of college
planning in the last year, because Faith, the
(05:43):
granddaughter I mentioned, has decided where to go.
And she went through all the school visits
and everything.
And it's a lot, but it really doesn't
start there.
I mean, a lot of families start there
like, oh, wow, my child's graduating.
We gotta make a plan.
Right, right.
Ideally, we'd love people to start at the
beginning, meaning a child is born, right?
(06:08):
And I looked up the data.
For a child born in 2025, it's projected
that the cost of a undergrad, four-year
degree, at a public university in 18 years
will be $182,000.
And the average cost is projected to be
at a private school is $234,000.
(06:32):
Yeah.
We always have clients saying, what's my number?
Usually they're talking about retirement, right?
What's my number?
What do I need to retire?
Well, that's your number for a new parent,
right?
And on top of all the other changes
that you're going through, especially if it's the
first child.
Right.
It's like, oh, I guess I should think
about this child, this little baby, this seven
(06:53):
pound person that's gonna be someday.
And we'd like them to go to college
and build a profession and life, right?
And so I think that's, when someone has
a child, I think that's, at least on
the mind, a lot of people don't take
action because they're overwhelmed.
But I think that's like a driving force
(07:15):
to say, okay, we've got to be responsible.
Maybe we should save for college.
Yeah.
Yeah, absolutely.
And I think, like you said, the sooner
you start, the more of a leg up
you have on saving those big amounts of
dollars that are needed.
So you can reverse engineer this.
People like to do math.
Some people, some don't.
(07:36):
But you can have a number that you're
shooting for, $200,000 roughly over 18 years,
and you can do the math.
We help clients with this all the time.
We do 529s for our clients who are
in need.
And you can actually say, how much do
I need to save with a projected return
and come up with a formula that shows
how much you need to save a month
(07:59):
or whatever the frequency is to have a
good shot of reaching this goal.
And so that's kind of simple.
But you know what?
I've done that with countless people.
What I see happen is you give them
the number and it's like, oh, we can't
afford that.
Like, you know, we're new.
This baby's gonna cost us money.
(08:19):
Who knows?
Diapers are expensive.
Somebody, you know, one of the spouses can't
work as much, you know, whatever the situation
is, right?
And so that causes many people to do
nothing, right?
They say, oh, I can't afford $500 a
month, which is, you know, a lot of
money for a young couple in our hypothetical
here.
(08:41):
But I want to encourage people to do
something because, you know, you can do it
gradually.
It's just like saving for retirement.
You have a goal.
It's probably more than 18 years away if
you're just starting but you have a goal
and you might just put in the minimum
when you start your first 401k or whatever
savings plan you have, retirement plan.
(09:01):
And you don't put in that 10 or
15% that we might recommend but you
just do something to get the match.
And I would just encourage young people who
are starting out and maybe just had a
baby or maybe the child's five years old
and you haven't done something is to do
something.
And generally, there's different ways to save.
You know, some states have these prepaid college
(09:23):
plans, which in my opinion, a little bit
restrictive to think that I'm in Florida, to
think that if I have a saving for
someone that, you know, in 18 years they're
definitely gonna wanna go to FSU or, you
know, University of Florida or wherever.
I think the best way, and I'd love
to get your input, is the standard 529
(09:45):
account invested for a young child, invested in
the S&P 500, just a broad-based
exposure to equities and just dollar cost average,
whatever you can afford, review it every year
and say, you know, can I afford another
$50 this year, right?
(10:06):
Yeah, definitely.
I think the, like you said, the flexibility
of the 529 is probably one of the
best traits other than the, you know, tax
efficiency of a 529, which is also amazing,
but just having the option.
So let's say you have a kid and
you're saving from the day they're born, you're
saving for their college and then they decide,
(10:27):
well, actually, I don't wanna go to college
and, you know, it might not be ideal
for the parent if that's what they envision
them doing, but you can move those savings
to another child, you know, in your life.
So it's not as restrictive.
Very flexible, yeah.
I mean, if I, like, I also looked
at the, some of the different options for,
that they have in Massachusetts for Massachusetts schools.
(10:49):
Again, it's like, well, yeah, you don't know
for sure if your kid is gonna go
to school in that state and it is
a little bit restrictive in that way.
So 529, it's relatively simple, it's streamlined and
it's very flexible.
I had an advisor I used to work
with and he said, you know, when his
kid was born, he just started putting $50
(11:10):
a month.
Just, it didn't seem like a lot and
he just put it in a growth fund
and, you know, 17 years later, it's doing
pretty well.
So, yeah.
It is, you know, we don't like the
term, set it and forget it.
You know, you do wanna monitor it, but
a 529 is pretty close to that.
(11:32):
Yeah, yeah.
And just consistently, like you said, consistently contributing,
even if it's not a huge amount of
money, because it does seem like a very
daunting number when you hear those college expenses,
especially for those private schools.
But anything is better than nothing, just like
retirement savings and just getting that money invested
(11:52):
early.
Time is on your side.
If you start when the kid is a
newborn, so definitely a great way to start
preparing for those expenses down the road.
Yeah.
So, you know, we're talking like we know
what a 529 is because we work with
them.
We assist clients with opening them and managing
them.
But for the person listening to the podcast
(12:14):
who says, what's a 529?
I guess we should go back a little
bit.
I apologize for not doing that.
529 is a tax deferred saving program to
save for any type of future education.
It's opened by an adult.
It could be a parent, could be a
grandparent, doesn't have to be related.
And they name a beneficiary.
(12:34):
So I'll just, I like to make it
personal.
So a long time ago, my wife and
I opened a 529 as Faith as a
beneficiary.
And so we put money in every month
as we're suggesting you do.
You don't have to put in every month.
You could front load it.
You could put, you have gift tax issues,
which is a really somewhat detailed conversation, but
(12:56):
to avoid the gift tax, you could put
$19,000 in a year or you could
fill a form and put more in.
But so you can do like a forward,
you can fund it forward or you can
do it monthly or you can do it
just when you have money.
Anybody can contribute to it.
So if you opened it for your child
or grandchild and someone else wanted to give
(13:17):
the child a birthday present and they could
contribute to the 529 as well.
So the money goes in, it grows, tax
deferred.
No one's, there's no taxes, no annual tax.
It just grows and grows and grows.
And then you can use that money, not
just for college.
You can use it for high school.
(13:37):
For example, if they went to a private
high school, if they got some special assistance
for their education, maybe they were having some
trouble and needed some summer camp, if you
will, you could pay for that.
If they go to college, you can pay
the tuition, room and board, housing, meals out
of the 529.
(13:59):
If they went to a trade school, if
they wanted to learn trade and not go
to a traditional college, you can use it
to pay for that.
So there's lots of ways you can pay
it.
The term educational expenses is very broad.
The payment comes directly from the 529 to
the institution and it's nice and clean.
And when you do that for an educational
(14:19):
purpose, for that beneficiary, it's tax free.
So all the growth that happened over the,
in theory, 18 years, however long you had
it, you never pay taxes on.
So that's a great deal.
So there was a common objection from some
parents and grandparents saying, well, I like that
idea, but what if my child doesn't go
(14:41):
to college, right?
So they would say like, I don't know.
I don't wanna risk it.
I don't wanna, but that's really, that objection
has been eliminated, if you will, by some
recent acts in Secure 2.0. That's an
act that Congress passed.
And now if there's any money left over
in a 529 or they don't go to
(15:03):
college at all, that money up to $35
,000 of it, assuming that the child or
now adult has earnings can be rolled over
into an IRA for the benefit of that
child or that person.
Or let's say that child doesn't go and,
or maybe the child doesn't want the IRA
(15:25):
or things aren't well with that child.
That child's not in a healthy position.
You can change the beneficiaries as you noted.
So if you have another child, or maybe
you can actually change it to yourself if
you wanted to, but you can rename the
beneficiary and as long, as many times as
you want.
And if that doesn't work for you, you
can take the money out and then you
(15:47):
pay taxes on that.
The government's not gonna let you avoid taxes
on that.
So it's to your point, super flexible and
really the best method.
Before the 529, there were a couple other
methods that are still out there and available.
They have a lot of limitations and they
just don't have the benefits that a 529
has.
(16:08):
Yeah, yeah.
And I think that new $35,000 Roth
rollover is, for those people that are like,
well, I'm not sure, it seems like a
lot to save.
There's that benefit to that.
You're also just saving for their future.
If they don't use all of the funds,
you can still use that for their retirement.
And that's a pretty great leg up really
(16:31):
early in life to have a $35,000
Roth in the first few years of working
life.
That's pretty good deal, so.
What a gift that, what a graduation gift
that is.
Yeah.
Those extra money and all.
We've paid for your college education and there's
$20,000 left for opening a Roth IRA
for you.
Yeah, yeah.
And they might not feel it in the
moment in 21 or 22, whatever, but.
(16:53):
Oh, they definitely wouldn't.
They'd be like, thank you.
I can't take that out?
Okay, nevermind.
Right.
That'll be growing for the rest of their
life, so.
35 years later or whatever it is and
it's worth a million dollars or something, they're
like, wow.
Exactly, they'll be thanking their parents then.
Yeah.
We're joking around and things are funny because
(17:16):
they're based in truth, right?
So young people, many young people, there's exceptions
to this generalized statement, but many young people
don't have a good understanding of money when
they're graduating high school, right?
And so they, so let's go, let's fast
forward.
You've saved your money and now you have
a graduating student and you're starting that process
(17:40):
of choosing your college, right?
And gee, it's so common.
It's so difficult for a 17 or 18
year old to say, oh, what do I
wanna study, right?
I mean, let's talk about the basics.
What do I wanna study and do for
the rest of my life?
It's like, it's ridiculous to think that that's
gonna work.
Yeah, it's extremely, I mean, at least in
(18:01):
my experience and even with some of my
friends, it's extremely daunting and scary proposition to
be like, all right, now I have to
choose right after finishing high school or, you
know.
How do I know?
I have no basis for it, right?
Exactly, if you've never been in the workforce,
you don't really know what you would like
and what you want your career to look
like.
(18:22):
There are other people like, my best friend's
an architect.
I knew he was gonna be architect since
we were in like second grade.
So there are those types too who are
just like, that's just the track and that
they know what they wanna do, but not
everyone's like that.
And choosing a college based on, you know,
what you might think you might wanna do
is a very difficult thing.
Absolutely, so, you know, if you're a young
(18:43):
person out there, like we get it.
And if you're a parent or grandparent, give
them some grace because think back and think
back of all the things that you've done
since you graduated high school.
And it's probably not that you've worked in
one profession based upon your college experience and,
you know, always stayed in that profession.
Most people jump around or, you know, see
(19:03):
something else and say, oh, I'm gonna go
back to school or I'm gonna see if
my skills transfer.
So not only is the decision of like,
what should I study, which should be the
first choice of people thinking about college.
It's probably not though.
No, I love my granddaughter more than I
can describe, but she's a runner and her
(19:24):
decision on where to go was certainly based
somewhat on what she's gonna study.
But it was really about running, right?
Where does she wanna run?
What division does she wanna run in?
You know, the whole thing.
So, and then when you get down to
money, 18 year olds, you know, maybe they've
worked, maybe they haven't, but they really can't
(19:46):
put their head around, you know, if the
school is gonna cost $100,000 for four
years after maybe some federal and state aid
and what that means.
And you have students like signing these just
loan documents, not understanding really what it means
or deciding to go to a school because
(20:07):
of reasons that have nothing to do with
money.
And, you know, family's not wanting to say,
we can't afford that or you shouldn't choose
that.
So it's a difficult time.
So it pays to like spend some time
planning, like have these discussions with your child,
the grandchild, just say child, about the expectations
(20:28):
from the family, what they're able to afford
and explain what taking out a $100,000
loan over four years is going to mean
at the end.
And, you know, come up with an agreed
upon budget and then focus your search for
colleges based upon that budget.
(20:48):
Because it can, the process, if you're not
prepared, can really get, can really run away
from people.
So planning, budgeting, having open conversations.
We've had as a guest on the podcast,
Russ, I don't know if you've, I think
it may have been before you joined our
team, but Cozy Whitman of Inside College Track.
(21:08):
And she has a service.
She's one of the principals of a service
that does consulting with families and, you know,
will hold their hand as much as they
want or just, you know, answer questions along
the way.
And it probably pays to at least talk
to somebody like that if you haven't gone
through this process before, because it's complicated and
(21:29):
it's difficult.
For sure.
And I would imagine having that conversation with
a professional, as well as the, you know,
graduating child of the child that's looking into
colleges.
Because like you said, there's like that financial
outlay and signing those loan documents for a
18 year old.
It's like, they can't conceptualize what that's gonna
(21:52):
mean down the road.
And if everyone's, you know, doing the same
thing, it's like, oh yeah, like a couple
of hundred thousand in student loans, it's no
big deal.
Yeah, I'll worry about that later.
I'm gonna get this job that pays me
half a million dollars.
Or it might not even be about the
job.
I've seen this other too, where it's like,
oh, it's a great school, great campus, seem
like really nice people.
(22:12):
And I'm gonna go follow my passions that
might not be the most lucrative after college,
you know.
So there's a lot of, you know, even
when I was looking at colleges, I remember
like the campus was a big deal.
Like how nice was the campus?
And- How nice are the dorms, right?
Right, right.
And looking back, it's like, who cares?
(22:34):
That's not how you should be selected at
your college.
But of course, as an 18 year old,
it's like, you're basing it off of what
you know and what you're interested in, so.
Well, if you ever wanna wonder about the
college tours, and I, you know, this is
my first time helping someone go through that
process with visiting schools with faith.
(22:56):
It's a sales pitch.
I mean, like, so what are they showing
you?
They didn't show you, they didn't show us
too many classrooms.
You know, like, it was a certain dorm,
or is the, a lot of time spent
on showing you the cafeterias and the meal
plans, and the student gym and the, you
(23:19):
know, all the clubs and the, you know,
the nightlife and the, whatever it is, right?
So, I mean, they're putting their, it's competition.
These schools are competing for students.
So it's, academics is, should be the first
reason that people are going, you know, is
there a program there that you wanna study?
You think you wanna study?
Do they have a good reputation?
(23:40):
Are they accredited?
All these kinds of, like, basic things.
Finances is certainly another big factor.
Set expectations, as we talked about.
And is this a school that someone can
afford?
Not everybody can afford $100,000 a year.
And do you need it, right?
And, but I think, you know, going through
the experience and listening to Cozy Whitman a
(24:03):
few times, and I think it's important that
you do spend some time on fit, though.
Like, so the size of the college, the
location, you know, do you wanna live close
to home?
Do you wanna commute?
Is it important that you are in a
certain climate?
For Faith, she wanted to be in a
cooler climate for running.
I was hoping she'd come to Florida, but,
you know, too hot here for her to
(24:24):
run.
You know, so where is a good fit
for you?
And the culture of a university or college,
they are different, but that requires some homework
and some digging in, there's lots of rating
services.
I mean, parents, I think, when they're thinking
about the culture of a university or college,
(24:46):
they see, is it on the top 10
party list school, right?
You know, you're not going there, but, you
know.
So all these things really matter, and it
has to be a deliberate process.
And it's one that I think our kids
and grandkids do need help with, even if
they seem to know what they want, because
there's a lot of things that, you know,
(25:07):
at 18, you don't have a good understanding
of.
Absolutely, yeah, and just to tack on one
other thing is when you're visiting the colleges
to talk to other students, to talk to,
if you can to talk to faculty, let's
say there's a program you're interested in, like
let's say it's a business school, you can
talk to, you can set up appointments even
with faculty members, get to know them a
(25:29):
little bit, cause those are most likely gonna
be your mentors and teachers for the next
four years.
So I think that could be useful when
you're going to see those colleges, cause it's
a big trip too.
There's a lot of colleges to visit and
they could be all over the place.
So you gotta make the most of it
and getting to know what other students are
talking about and the faculty can definitely make
(25:49):
a decision a little bit easier.
So we've talked about, you know, the best
way that we think to save for educational
expenses for a child, the 529.
And if we can help you with any
of this, if you need help or suggestions
or advice on the right vehicle, doing some
financial projections on saving for college, we're happy
(26:09):
to do that.
We do it for our clients.
If we can help you just give our
office a call, 508-771-8900.
So, you know, that's starting out saving for
it.
We talked a little bit about the process
of choosing the right college and let's just
spend a few minutes for us talking about
how do you pay for it?
So obviously we hope someone's got a robust
(26:32):
529, right?
And, you know, they save so much that
they have too much.
They're gonna open a Roth later, right?
So that's not everybody, right?
So I think most people who are in
this process have heard of the FAFSA.
That's an application, a federal application for student
aid that everyone who's applying for colleges fills
(26:53):
out and you get back a report depending
on the family's income and so forth, some
ratios.
And it does matter if the parents have
a 529.
It doesn't matter if the grandparents have a
529, but we'll put that aside for now.
And they give you some federal aid.
Some federal aid is available.
(27:14):
Obviously the less income, the less wealth the
family has, the more federal aid.
And that's gonna be the starting point.
It's not gonna pay for all of college,
certainly.
You know, maybe $5,000 might be the
median number that people get.
Some people get more, some people get less,
but it's certainly not gonna pay for all
of college.
(27:35):
And then there's grants and gifts from the
institutions.
So this is all about, you know, kids
hear it enough.
Kids probably hear it too much.
You gotta keep your grades up.
You gotta keep your grades up.
You gotta get into extracurricular activities for your
college application.
You gotta get recommendations.
You know, building that college application to hopefully
encourage the schools that you're applying to to
(27:57):
give you some grants and gifts, right?
So, but you really can't depend on that.
Those are gonna be depending on where you're
going.
If you maybe fit into a certain category
that they're looking for, you know, a certain
major, different majors that they're encouraging students to
apply for might have a different grant than
if you're in another major.
(28:20):
And then there's other types of scholarships like
athletic scholarships and, you know, private scholarships.
After that, it's really about two things that
you kind of have to make decisions about.
One is, can the family outside of the
529 provide a gift to the student that
(28:41):
can come from a parent or the grandparent
or, you know, anyone who wants to do
it, actually.
And so that would be one way that
you can fund some of the college.
And then it comes down to loans, whether
they're federal loans that are subsidized or unsubsidized
or private loans or parent loans.
And that's where I just wanna spend one
(29:02):
part, a couple of minutes before we wrap
this up for us is on the loan
part.
You really have to be thoughtful and diligent
and get help.
When you receive the grants back, you get
a statement, you know, from each school saying
how much they're going to give you as
(29:22):
a financial aid letter.
And in that, in the financial aid letter,
which many people get confused about, Cozy Whitman
talked about this when she was on the
show, is whatever loans are available to you.
And if you're not careful, they almost look
like they're gifts.
Because they're just on the form with everything
(29:42):
else.
You know, this is your Pell Grant, this
is your athletic scholarship, this is your grant
for studying biology or whatever the case might
be at our university.
And then there's lines about Stafford loans and
all this.
And at the bottom, they just, it nets
out to a number like, okay, you need
(30:03):
$10,000 more.
But you've already in that financial aid letter
are those lines which already include loans from
the federal government that they're willing to give
you.
So just be thoughtful about it.
And you know, if you need help reviewing
the one, work with someone like Cozy Whitman
or call your financial advisor and go through
(30:23):
them to really parse out what parts are
loans and what parts are gifts.
And if it's a gift, meaning a grant,
are they contingent on you, the student, keeping
up a certain grade point average?
Is it contingent upon maybe doing some athletic
accomplishments, whatever the money came from?
Just so you have a full picture of
(30:47):
what the potential costs could be at that
given university.
And then you have to make the decision.
Do you want to go to this school
and do you want to take the loans
or do you want to look somewhere else?
Yeah, I think as you're illustrating, I think
it is very complicated, especially if there's a
lot of applications involved, a lot of schools
(31:07):
that are accepting, they all have different grants,
different scholarships, different terms.
100% right.
And so trying to navigate all that and
then also deciding, well, which is the best
option for me?
It's a lot.
So I think leaning on those professional resources,
talking to your financial advisor is definitely helpful.
Our team has seen these before and we
(31:29):
can help navigate a little bit.
If we need additional help, we can always
loop in other folks to give some guidance.
So definitely don't feel like you're in it
alone.
There's definitely a lot that could be helped.
That's right.
All those times and the processes are critical.
So take your time with it.
Get the advice as you said, Russ, and
(31:50):
we're happy to be a resource for you.
If you have a young child and you
haven't started a 529, give us a call.
If you have a 529 and you get
a little leeway in your budget, maybe it's
a good time to up your savings.
And if you're a recent upcoming graduate or
a recent graduate, congratulations and the world is
at your feet.
(32:11):
Well, good conversation, Russ.
I hope we helped some people think about
this complicated process as we wrap it up
today.
And thank you for listening.
Until next time, keep striving for something more.
Thank you for listening to Something More with
Chris Boyd.
Call us for help, whether it's for financial
planning or portfolio management, insurance concerns, or those
(32:33):
quality of life issues that make the money
matters matter.
Whatever's on your mind, visit us at somethingmorewithchrisboyd
.com or call us toll free at 866
-771-8901.
Or send us your questions to amr-info
at wealthenhancement.com.
You're listening to Something More with Chris Boyd
(32:54):
Financial Talk Show, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services and
Jay Christopher Boyd provide investment advice on an
individual basis to clients only.
Proper advice depends on a complete analysis of
all facts and circumstances.
The information given on this program is general
financial comments and cannot be relied upon as
pertaining to your specific situation.
Wealth Enhancement Group cannot guarantee that using the
information from this show will generate profits or
ensure freedom from loss.
(33:15):
Listeners should consult their own financial advisors or
conduct their own due diligence before making any
financial decisions.
Welcome to Something More with Chris Boyd.
Chris Boyd is a certified financial planner practitioner
and senior vice president and financial advisor at
Wealth Enhancement Group, one of the nation's largest
registered investment advisors.
We call it Something More because we'd like
to talk not only about those important dollar
and cents issues, but also the quality of
life issues that make the money matters matter.
(00:22):
Here he is, your fulfillment facilitator, your partner
in prosperity, advising clients on Cape Cod and
across the country.
Here's your host, Jay Christopher Boyd.
Hello and welcome to another edition of Something
More with Chris Boyd.
My name is Jeff Perry.
Chris Boyd is at a conference this week.
So Russ Ball, my co-host today, and
(00:43):
I have the privilege of sitting in for
him.
How are you doing, Russ?
Pretty good, Jeff, pretty good.
Enjoying the spring weather out here on the
Cape?
How about you?
We were back on Cape Cod last weekend
for Mother's Day to celebrate with some friends
and family.
And half the weekend reminded me why I
moved and the other half of the weekend
reminded me, hey, this is nice sometimes.
(01:04):
Yeah, yeah, it's definitely becoming that time of
year.
So just in time for Memorial Day.
It's a beautiful time when that weather breaks
and you feel the sunshine again and the
warm weather and the ocean breeze.
And Cape Cod's a beautiful place from mid
-May to October.
Yeah, yeah, this is my first winter getting
through it up here.
(01:25):
And it was definitely an experience.
So it feels even more glorious when the
leaves start going out on the trees and
life feels really good again.
Well, speaking of different places, you just returned
from Minnesota.
You were at a conference for the Wealth
Enhancement Group.
Tell our listeners what you did there.
(01:45):
Yeah, so I was out there from Tuesday
to Thursday.
We had a next-gen conference, excuse me.
And just getting to know the company, getting
to know leadership, getting to see the Wealth
Enhancement offices, all that was really great.
And probably most of all, just meeting other
(02:06):
advisors from across the country.
I met folks from Texas, California, Florida, New
Jersey, you name it.
So I think there were about 75 advisors
from across the country that came from different
Wealth Enhancement teams.
Just doing some idea sharing and talking about
what their practices are doing and how they're
(02:29):
helping their clients.
So it was a really beneficial, really great
experience and good to finally have that actual
connection with Wealth Enhancement on the corporate side.
So really successful trip, I'd say.
Well, when we transitioned over to Wealth Enhancement,
oh, about a year and a half ago,
that was one of the primary reasons that
(02:51):
we decided that Chris Boyd and Kristen decided
to join Wealth Enhancement Group because of the
resources and the connections to other people in
it.
It comes up, I won't say every day,
but frequently where we have a unique thing
that we've never seen before in a client.
Every client is unique.
And Chris and Kristen have certainly seen practically
everything.
But sometimes you get something that's a little
(03:13):
odd or a little narrow that you haven't
dealt with and having all the resources across
the country with experts in practically every field.
Even a couple of weeks ago, we did
a podcast with an advisor from the DC
area who is a specialist because he's built
a practice being specialist on benefits of federal
(03:34):
employees, like something that we on Cape Cod
typically don't deal with.
We don't have a lot of federal employees
on Cape Cod and it's good to have
someone like him or whatever the issue is,
right?
So making those connections.
Next gen, I guess you're the next generation,
Russ.
I guess so.
I guess so.
(03:55):
But to your point, I think the other
thing I like about Wealth Enhancement broadly is
just everyone's so willing to help and be
a resource.
I think not just on the corporate side,
but other teams, we have these email groups
that we're talking to other advisors about different
ideas and doing that idea sharing and everyone's
(04:16):
always so responsive and ready to jump on
and help out.
So I think that's a really useful part
of the Wealth Enhancement infrastructure.
I agree.
It doesn't feel corporate.
It feels still like a team, like a
smaller environment because you're only dealing with certain
individuals or certain teams on any given subject.
It's not the corporate structure that's weighing you
(04:38):
down and filling out forms all day or
whatever the case might be.
Exactly.
Well, speaking of next generations, I think it's
the perfect segue.
I'm going to a graduation, my granddaughter's graduation
party coming back in Massachusetts for the first
weekend, the second weekend of June.
So speaking of next generations, right?
(05:01):
And so there's high school students all over
the state, country, graduating and deciding what to
do next job, entering the job force, going
in the military, going to college, trade schools,
whatever it is.
And there's just as many probably, or a
few less, obviously, who are graduating from college
(05:21):
and going to grad school, going into the
workforce.
So in the spirit of all this changes
that is going on, I think it's good
to talk about during this episode is to
cover some of the basics of college planning.
Our family has done a lot of college
planning in the last year, because Faith, the
(05:43):
granddaughter I mentioned, has decided where to go.
And she went through all the school visits
and everything.
And it's a lot, but it really doesn't
start there.
I mean, a lot of families start there
like, oh, wow, my child's graduating.
We gotta make a plan.
Right, right.
Ideally, we'd love people to start at the
beginning, meaning a child is born, right?
(06:08):
And I looked up the data.
For a child born in 2025, it's projected
that the cost of a undergrad, four-year
degree, at a public university in 18 years
will be $182,000.
And the average cost is projected to be
at a private school is $234,000.
(06:32):
Yeah.
We always have clients saying, what's my number?
Usually they're talking about retirement, right?
What's my number?
What do I need to retire?
Well, that's your number for a new parent,
right?
And on top of all the other changes
that you're going through, especially if it's the
first child.
Right.
It's like, oh, I guess I should think
about this child, this little baby, this seven
(06:53):
pound person that's gonna be someday.
And we'd like them to go to college
and build a profession and life, right?
And so I think that's, when someone has
a child, I think that's, at least on
the mind, a lot of people don't take
action because they're overwhelmed.
But I think that's like a driving force
(07:15):
to say, okay, we've got to be responsible.
Maybe we should save for college.
Yeah.
Yeah, absolutely.
And I think, like you said, the sooner
you start, the more of a leg up
you have on saving those big amounts of
dollars that are needed.
So you can reverse engineer this.
People like to do math.
Some people, some don't.
(07:36):
But you can have a number that you're
shooting for, $200,000 roughly over 18 years,
and you can do the math.
We help clients with this all the time.
We do 529s for our clients who are
in need.
And you can actually say, how much do
I need to save with a projected return
and come up with a formula that shows
how much you need to save a month
(07:59):
or whatever the frequency is to have a
good shot of reaching this goal.
And so that's kind of simple.
But you know what?
I've done that with countless people.
What I see happen is you give them
the number and it's like, oh, we can't
afford that.
Like, you know, we're new.
This baby's gonna cost us money.
(08:19):
Who knows?
Diapers are expensive.
Somebody, you know, one of the spouses can't
work as much, you know, whatever the situation
is, right?
And so that causes many people to do
nothing, right?
They say, oh, I can't afford $500 a
month, which is, you know, a lot of
money for a young couple in our hypothetical
here.
(08:41):
But I want to encourage people to do
something because, you know, you can do it
gradually.
It's just like saving for retirement.
You have a goal.
It's probably more than 18 years away if
you're just starting but you have a goal
and you might just put in the minimum
when you start your first 401k or whatever
savings plan you have, retirement plan.
(09:01):
And you don't put in that 10 or
15% that we might recommend but you
just do something to get the match.
And I would just encourage young people who
are starting out and maybe just had a
baby or maybe the child's five years old
and you haven't done something is to do
something.
And generally, there's different ways to save.
You know, some states have these prepaid college
(09:23):
plans, which in my opinion, a little bit
restrictive to think that I'm in Florida, to
think that if I have a saving for
someone that, you know, in 18 years they're
definitely gonna wanna go to FSU or, you
know, University of Florida or wherever.
I think the best way, and I'd love
to get your input, is the standard 529
(09:45):
account invested for a young child, invested in
the S&P 500, just a broad-based
exposure to equities and just dollar cost average,
whatever you can afford, review it every year
and say, you know, can I afford another
$50 this year, right?
(10:06):
Yeah, definitely.
I think the, like you said, the flexibility
of the 529 is probably one of the
best traits other than the, you know, tax
efficiency of a 529, which is also amazing,
but just having the option.
So let's say you have a kid and
you're saving from the day they're born, you're
saving for their college and then they decide,
(10:27):
well, actually, I don't wanna go to college
and, you know, it might not be ideal
for the parent if that's what they envision
them doing, but you can move those savings
to another child, you know, in your life.
So it's not as restrictive.
Very flexible, yeah.
I mean, if I, like, I also looked
at the, some of the different options for,
that they have in Massachusetts for Massachusetts schools.
(10:49):
Again, it's like, well, yeah, you don't know
for sure if your kid is gonna go
to school in that state and it is
a little bit restrictive in that way.
So 529, it's relatively simple, it's streamlined and
it's very flexible.
I had an advisor I used to work
with and he said, you know, when his
kid was born, he just started putting $50
(11:10):
a month.
Just, it didn't seem like a lot and
he just put it in a growth fund
and, you know, 17 years later, it's doing
pretty well.
So, yeah.
It is, you know, we don't like the
term, set it and forget it.
You know, you do wanna monitor it, but
a 529 is pretty close to that.
(11:32):
Yeah, yeah.
And just consistently, like you said, consistently contributing,
even if it's not a huge amount of
money, because it does seem like a very
daunting number when you hear those college expenses,
especially for those private schools.
But anything is better than nothing, just like
retirement savings and just getting that money invested
(11:52):
early.
Time is on your side.
If you start when the kid is a
newborn, so definitely a great way to start
preparing for those expenses down the road.
Yeah.
So, you know, we're talking like we know
what a 529 is because we work with
them.
We assist clients with opening them and managing
them.
But for the person listening to the podcast
(12:14):
who says, what's a 529?
I guess we should go back a little
bit.
I apologize for not doing that.
529 is a tax deferred saving program to
save for any type of future education.
It's opened by an adult.
It could be a parent, could be a
grandparent, doesn't have to be related.
And they name a beneficiary.
(12:34):
So I'll just, I like to make it
personal.
So a long time ago, my wife and
I opened a 529 as Faith as a
beneficiary.
And so we put money in every month
as we're suggesting you do.
You don't have to put in every month.
You could front load it.
You could put, you have gift tax issues,
which is a really somewhat detailed conversation, but
(12:56):
to avoid the gift tax, you could put
$19,000 in a year or you could
fill a form and put more in.
But so you can do like a forward,
you can fund it forward or you can
do it monthly or you can do it
just when you have money.
Anybody can contribute to it.
So if you opened it for your child
or grandchild and someone else wanted to give
(13:17):
the child a birthday present and they could
contribute to the 529 as well.
So the money goes in, it grows, tax
deferred.
No one's, there's no taxes, no annual tax.
It just grows and grows and grows.
And then you can use that money, not
just for college.
You can use it for high school.
(13:37):
For example, if they went to a private
high school, if they got some special assistance
for their education, maybe they were having some
trouble and needed some summer camp, if you
will, you could pay for that.
If they go to college, you can pay
the tuition, room and board, housing, meals out
of the 529.
(13:59):
If they went to a trade school, if
they wanted to learn trade and not go
to a traditional college, you can use it
to pay for that.
So there's lots of ways you can pay
it.
The term educational expenses is very broad.
The payment comes directly from the 529 to
the institution and it's nice and clean.
And when you do that for an educational
(14:19):
purpose, for that beneficiary, it's tax free.
So all the growth that happened over the,
in theory, 18 years, however long you had
it, you never pay taxes on.
So that's a great deal.
So there was a common objection from some
parents and grandparents saying, well, I like that
idea, but what if my child doesn't go
(14:41):
to college, right?
So they would say like, I don't know.
I don't wanna risk it.
I don't wanna, but that's really, that objection
has been eliminated, if you will, by some
recent acts in Secure 2.0. That's an
act that Congress passed.
And now if there's any money left over
in a 529 or they don't go to
(15:03):
college at all, that money up to $35
,000 of it, assuming that the child or
now adult has earnings can be rolled over
into an IRA for the benefit of that
child or that person.
Or let's say that child doesn't go and,
or maybe the child doesn't want the IRA
(15:25):
or things aren't well with that child.
That child's not in a healthy position.
You can change the beneficiaries as you noted.
So if you have another child, or maybe
you can actually change it to yourself if
you wanted to, but you can rename the
beneficiary and as long, as many times as
you want.
And if that doesn't work for you, you
can take the money out and then you
(15:47):
pay taxes on that.
The government's not gonna let you avoid taxes
on that.
So it's to your point, super flexible and
really the best method.
Before the 529, there were a couple other
methods that are still out there and available.
They have a lot of limitations and they
just don't have the benefits that a 529
has.
(16:08):
Yeah, yeah.
And I think that new $35,000 Roth
rollover is, for those people that are like,
well, I'm not sure, it seems like a
lot to save.
There's that benefit to that.
You're also just saving for their future.
If they don't use all of the funds,
you can still use that for their retirement.
And that's a pretty great leg up really
(16:31):
early in life to have a $35,000
Roth in the first few years of working
life.
That's pretty good deal, so.
What a gift that, what a graduation gift
that is.
Yeah.
Those extra money and all.
We've paid for your college education and there's
$20,000 left for opening a Roth IRA
for you.
Yeah, yeah.
And they might not feel it in the
moment in 21 or 22, whatever, but.
(16:53):
Oh, they definitely wouldn't.
They'd be like, thank you.
I can't take that out?
Okay, nevermind.
Right.
That'll be growing for the rest of their
life, so.
35 years later or whatever it is and
it's worth a million dollars or something, they're
like, wow.
Exactly, they'll be thanking their parents then.
Yeah.
We're joking around and things are funny because
(17:16):
they're based in truth, right?
So young people, many young people, there's exceptions
to this generalized statement, but many young people
don't have a good understanding of money when
they're graduating high school, right?
And so they, so let's go, let's fast
forward.
You've saved your money and now you have
a graduating student and you're starting that process
(17:40):
of choosing your college, right?
And gee, it's so common.
It's so difficult for a 17 or 18
year old to say, oh, what do I
wanna study, right?
I mean, let's talk about the basics.
What do I wanna study and do for
the rest of my life?
It's like, it's ridiculous to think that that's
gonna work.
Yeah, it's extremely, I mean, at least in
(18:01):
my experience and even with some of my
friends, it's extremely daunting and scary proposition to
be like, all right, now I have to
choose right after finishing high school or, you
know.
How do I know?
I have no basis for it, right?
Exactly, if you've never been in the workforce,
you don't really know what you would like
and what you want your career to look
like.
(18:22):
There are other people like, my best friend's
an architect.
I knew he was gonna be architect since
we were in like second grade.
So there are those types too who are
just like, that's just the track and that
they know what they wanna do, but not
everyone's like that.
And choosing a college based on, you know,
what you might think you might wanna do
is a very difficult thing.
Absolutely, so, you know, if you're a young
(18:43):
person out there, like we get it.
And if you're a parent or grandparent, give
them some grace because think back and think
back of all the things that you've done
since you graduated high school.
And it's probably not that you've worked in
one profession based upon your college experience and,
you know, always stayed in that profession.
Most people jump around or, you know, see
(19:03):
something else and say, oh, I'm gonna go
back to school or I'm gonna see if
my skills transfer.
So not only is the decision of like,
what should I study, which should be the
first choice of people thinking about college.
It's probably not though.
No, I love my granddaughter more than I
can describe, but she's a runner and her
(19:24):
decision on where to go was certainly based
somewhat on what she's gonna study.
But it was really about running, right?
Where does she wanna run?
What division does she wanna run in?
You know, the whole thing.
So, and then when you get down to
money, 18 year olds, you know, maybe they've
worked, maybe they haven't, but they really can't
(19:46):
put their head around, you know, if the
school is gonna cost $100,000 for four
years after maybe some federal and state aid
and what that means.
And you have students like signing these just
loan documents, not understanding really what it means
or deciding to go to a school because
(20:07):
of reasons that have nothing to do with
money.
And, you know, family's not wanting to say,
we can't afford that or you shouldn't choose
that.
So it's a difficult time.
So it pays to like spend some time
planning, like have these discussions with your child,
the grandchild, just say child, about the expectations
(20:28):
from the family, what they're able to afford
and explain what taking out a $100,000
loan over four years is going to mean
at the end.
And, you know, come up with an agreed
upon budget and then focus your search for
colleges based upon that budget.
(20:48):
Because it can, the process, if you're not
prepared, can really get, can really run away
from people.
So planning, budgeting, having open conversations.
We've had as a guest on the podcast,
Russ, I don't know if you've, I think
it may have been before you joined our
team, but Cozy Whitman of Inside College Track.
(21:08):
And she has a service.
She's one of the principals of a service
that does consulting with families and, you know,
will hold their hand as much as they
want or just, you know, answer questions along
the way.
And it probably pays to at least talk
to somebody like that if you haven't gone
through this process before, because it's complicated and
(21:29):
it's difficult.
For sure.
And I would imagine having that conversation with
a professional, as well as the, you know,
graduating child of the child that's looking into
colleges.
Because like you said, there's like that financial
outlay and signing those loan documents for a
18 year old.
It's like, they can't conceptualize what that's gonna
(21:52):
mean down the road.
And if everyone's, you know, doing the same
thing, it's like, oh yeah, like a couple
of hundred thousand in student loans, it's no
big deal.
Yeah, I'll worry about that later.
I'm gonna get this job that pays me
half a million dollars.
Or it might not even be about the
job.
I've seen this other too, where it's like,
oh, it's a great school, great campus, seem
like really nice people.
(22:12):
And I'm gonna go follow my passions that
might not be the most lucrative after college,
you know.
So there's a lot of, you know, even
when I was looking at colleges, I remember
like the campus was a big deal.
Like how nice was the campus?
And- How nice are the dorms, right?
Right, right.
And looking back, it's like, who cares?
(22:34):
That's not how you should be selected at
your college.
But of course, as an 18 year old,
it's like, you're basing it off of what
you know and what you're interested in, so.
Well, if you ever wanna wonder about the
college tours, and I, you know, this is
my first time helping someone go through that
process with visiting schools with faith.
(22:56):
It's a sales pitch.
I mean, like, so what are they showing
you?
They didn't show you, they didn't show us
too many classrooms.
You know, like, it was a certain dorm,
or is the, a lot of time spent
on showing you the cafeterias and the meal
plans, and the student gym and the, you
(23:19):
know, all the clubs and the, you know,
the nightlife and the, whatever it is, right?
So, I mean, they're putting their, it's competition.
These schools are competing for students.
So it's, academics is, should be the first
reason that people are going, you know, is
there a program there that you wanna study?
You think you wanna study?
Do they have a good reputation?
(23:40):
Are they accredited?
All these kinds of, like, basic things.
Finances is certainly another big factor.
Set expectations, as we talked about.
And is this a school that someone can
afford?
Not everybody can afford $100,000 a year.
And do you need it, right?
And, but I think, you know, going through
the experience and listening to Cozy Whitman a
(24:03):
few times, and I think it's important that
you do spend some time on fit, though.
Like, so the size of the college, the
location, you know, do you wanna live close
to home?
Do you wanna commute?
Is it important that you are in a
certain climate?
For Faith, she wanted to be in a
cooler climate for running.
I was hoping she'd come to Florida, but,
you know, too hot here for her to
(24:24):
run.
You know, so where is a good fit
for you?
And the culture of a university or college,
they are different, but that requires some homework
and some digging in, there's lots of rating
services.
I mean, parents, I think, when they're thinking
about the culture of a university or college,
(24:46):
they see, is it on the top 10
party list school, right?
You know, you're not going there, but, you
know.
So all these things really matter, and it
has to be a deliberate process.
And it's one that I think our kids
and grandkids do need help with, even if
they seem to know what they want, because
there's a lot of things that, you know,
(25:07):
at 18, you don't have a good understanding
of.
Absolutely, yeah, and just to tack on one
other thing is when you're visiting the colleges
to talk to other students, to talk to,
if you can to talk to faculty, let's
say there's a program you're interested in, like
let's say it's a business school, you can
talk to, you can set up appointments even
with faculty members, get to know them a
(25:29):
little bit, cause those are most likely gonna
be your mentors and teachers for the next
four years.
So I think that could be useful when
you're going to see those colleges, cause it's
a big trip too.
There's a lot of colleges to visit and
they could be all over the place.
So you gotta make the most of it
and getting to know what other students are
talking about and the faculty can definitely make
(25:49):
a decision a little bit easier.
So we've talked about, you know, the best
way that we think to save for educational
expenses for a child, the 529.
And if we can help you with any
of this, if you need help or suggestions
or advice on the right vehicle, doing some
financial projections on saving for college, we're happy
(26:09):
to do that.
We do it for our clients.
If we can help you just give our
office a call, 508-771-8900.
So, you know, that's starting out saving for
it.
We talked a little bit about the process
of choosing the right college and let's just
spend a few minutes for us talking about
how do you pay for it?
So obviously we hope someone's got a robust
(26:32):
529, right?
And, you know, they save so much that
they have too much.
They're gonna open a Roth later, right?
So that's not everybody, right?
So I think most people who are in
this process have heard of the FAFSA.
That's an application, a federal application for student
aid that everyone who's applying for colleges fills
(26:53):
out and you get back a report depending
on the family's income and so forth, some
ratios.
And it does matter if the parents have
a 529.
It doesn't matter if the grandparents have a
529, but we'll put that aside for now.
And they give you some federal aid.
Some federal aid is available.
(27:14):
Obviously the less income, the less wealth the
family has, the more federal aid.
And that's gonna be the starting point.
It's not gonna pay for all of college,
certainly.
You know, maybe $5,000 might be the
median number that people get.
Some people get more, some people get less,
but it's certainly not gonna pay for all
of college.
(27:35):
And then there's grants and gifts from the
institutions.
So this is all about, you know, kids
hear it enough.
Kids probably hear it too much.
You gotta keep your grades up.
You gotta keep your grades up.
You gotta get into extracurricular activities for your
college application.
You gotta get recommendations.
You know, building that college application to hopefully
encourage the schools that you're applying to to
(27:57):
give you some grants and gifts, right?
So, but you really can't depend on that.
Those are gonna be depending on where you're
going.
If you maybe fit into a certain category
that they're looking for, you know, a certain
major, different majors that they're encouraging students to
apply for might have a different grant than
if you're in another major.
(28:20):
And then there's other types of scholarships like
athletic scholarships and, you know, private scholarships.
After that, it's really about two things that
you kind of have to make decisions about.
One is, can the family outside of the
529 provide a gift to the student that
(28:41):
can come from a parent or the grandparent
or, you know, anyone who wants to do
it, actually.
And so that would be one way that
you can fund some of the college.
And then it comes down to loans, whether
they're federal loans that are subsidized or unsubsidized
or private loans or parent loans.
And that's where I just wanna spend one
(29:02):
part, a couple of minutes before we wrap
this up for us is on the loan
part.
You really have to be thoughtful and diligent
and get help.
When you receive the grants back, you get
a statement, you know, from each school saying
how much they're going to give you as
(29:22):
a financial aid letter.
And in that, in the financial aid letter,
which many people get confused about, Cozy Whitman
talked about this when she was on the
show, is whatever loans are available to you.
And if you're not careful, they almost look
like they're gifts.
Because they're just on the form with everything
(29:42):
else.
You know, this is your Pell Grant, this
is your athletic scholarship, this is your grant
for studying biology or whatever the case might
be at our university.
And then there's lines about Stafford loans and
all this.
And at the bottom, they just, it nets
out to a number like, okay, you need
(30:03):
$10,000 more.
But you've already in that financial aid letter
are those lines which already include loans from
the federal government that they're willing to give
you.
So just be thoughtful about it.
And you know, if you need help reviewing
the one, work with someone like Cozy Whitman
or call your financial advisor and go through
(30:23):
them to really parse out what parts are
loans and what parts are gifts.
And if it's a gift, meaning a grant,
are they contingent on you, the student, keeping
up a certain grade point average?
Is it contingent upon maybe doing some athletic
accomplishments, whatever the money came from?
Just so you have a full picture of
(30:47):
what the potential costs could be at that
given university.
And then you have to make the decision.
Do you want to go to this school
and do you want to take the loans
or do you want to look somewhere else?
Yeah, I think as you're illustrating, I think
it is very complicated, especially if there's a
lot of applications involved, a lot of schools
(31:07):
that are accepting, they all have different grants,
different scholarships, different terms.
100% right.
And so trying to navigate all that and
then also deciding, well, which is the best
option for me?
It's a lot.
So I think leaning on those professional resources,
talking to your financial advisor is definitely helpful.
Our team has seen these before and we
(31:29):
can help navigate a little bit.
If we need additional help, we can always
loop in other folks to give some guidance.
So definitely don't feel like you're in it
alone.
There's definitely a lot that could be helped.
That's right.
All those times and the processes are critical.
So take your time with it.
Get the advice as you said, Russ, and
(31:50):
we're happy to be a resource for you.
If you have a young child and you
haven't started a 529, give us a call.
If you have a 529 and you get
a little leeway in your budget, maybe it's
a good time to up your savings.
And if you're a recent upcoming graduate or
a recent graduate, congratulations and the world is
at your feet.
(32:11):
Well, good conversation, Russ.
I hope we helped some people think about
this complicated process as we wrap it up
today.
And thank you for listening.
Until next time, keep striving for something more.
Thank you for listening to Something More with
Chris Boyd.
Call us for help, whether it's for financial
planning or portfolio management, insurance concerns, or those
(32:33):
quality of life issues that make the money
matters matter.
Whatever's on your mind, visit us at somethingmorewithchrisboyd
.com or call us toll free at 866
-771-8901.
Or send us your questions to amr-info
at wealthenhancement.com.
You're listening to Something More with Chris Boyd
(32:54):
Financial Talk Show, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services and
Jay Christopher Boyd provide investment advice on an
individual basis to clients only.
Proper advice depends on a complete analysis of
all facts and circumstances.
The information given on this program is general
financial comments and cannot be relied upon as
pertaining to your specific situation.
Wealth Enhancement Group cannot guarantee that using the
information from this show will generate profits or
ensure freedom from loss.
(33:15):
Listeners should consult their own financial advisors or
conduct their own due diligence before making any
financial decisions.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Boysober
Have you ever wondered what life might be like if you stopped worrying about being wanted, and focused on understanding what you actually want? That was the question Hope Woodard asked herself after a string of situationships inspired her to take a break from sex and dating. She went "boysober," a personal concept that sparked a global movement among women looking to prioritize themselves over men. Now, Hope is looking to expand the ways we explore our relationship to relationships. Taking a bold, unfiltered look into modern love, romance, and self-discovery, Boysober will dive into messy stories about dating, sex, love, friendship, and breaking generational patterns—all with humor, vulnerability, and a fresh perspective.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com