Everyone understands, at some level, the need to save for long-term goals. Buying a house, preparing for retirement, or sending a child to college are goals that we know we have to save for. But how much difference does it make whether we start saving now versus saving later? Read the full article

Both the House and Senate have passed the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, and the bill is expected to pass into law soon. What goodies does it hold for taxpayers? Read the full article

Fidelity Investments today released its 4th annual College Savings Indicator study, in which it calculates the percentage of future college costs that parents are prepared to meet. In addition, Fidelity offered guidelines on the amounts that families need to save for college as a % of household income. Read the full article

A report released this month on indicates that while average college debt levels reached $23,200 for the graduating class of 2008, there is an extremely wide range of variation among student debts loads in different parts of the country and at different school. It’s not very enlightening to speak of an “average” college debt when average debt levels at specific institutions vary from $5,000 to $106,000. Read the full article

529 plan savers have received a small, temporary gift from the IRS. As I noted in an earlier post, IRS rules permit only one change per year in the way that a 529 plan is invested. However, in response to recent turmoil in financial markets, the IRS has announced that for 2009 only, it will permit up to two changes in investment strategy during the calendar year. As before, a change in investment strategy will also be permitted if the designated beneficiary of the account changes.

The change provides a bit more flexibility for the ten million 529 plan owners who reportedly have invested $130 billion in the plans. If you’ve been meaning to make an adjustment in your child’s allocation and have not done so this year, it’s a good idea to do it now. Then, you'll still have two chances to adjust in 2009 if that's needed for some reason. Read the full article

With stock markets down precipitously and few asset classes that haven’t declined significantly this year, many investors in 529 college savings plans are wondering what to do. In some situations, it may make sense to make a change in your child’s 529 plan. Read the full article

Most middle-class parents aren't looking forward to the cost of sending their kids through college. For those of you who really want to get a head start, here's a scheme that will help maximize your college savings, albeit via rather quirky means. Read the full article

Listen carefully, and you can hear the $2.6 trillion municipal bond market breathe a sigh of relief. Today the U. S. Supreme Court annouced its ruling in DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE OF KENTUCKY ET AL. v. DAVIS ET UX. It concluded, in a 7-2 decision, that it is not unconstitutional for a state to give favorable tax treatment to owners of its own municipal bonds while not doing so for holders of bonds issued by other states. In an earlier post, I discussed how a different decision in this case would have affected not only municipal bonds but also 529 college savings plans. Read the full article

The Supreme Court is considering an appeal to Kentucky versus Davis, a lawsuit that could have an impact on the state tax treatment of both municipal bonds and some state 529 plans. Read the full article

Recently someone said to me that the only reason she invested in a 529 savings plan for her child was that everyone she knew had done the same thing. Often people have at best a vague understanding of how these plans work, why they are a desirable way to save for college, or how to select a plan that suits their needs. Read the full article

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