Are your kids headed for college? Are you worried about how to pay for it? Read on for three key things you can do right now to help improve your chances of getting financial aid for college.
You should plan on paying as little as possible out of your own pocket for your children’s education. In fact, your kids should get financial aid or scholarships for college.
But you’re convinced that you make too much. Well, that’s what “they” want you to believe. As it turns out, there are a quite few things you can do to help your kids get financial aid for college after all.
Read on for three things you should start doing right now. They could save you thousands of dollars and mean the difference between a depleted retirement account and a nice big nest egg:
1) Educate yourself
Get the facts, not just the misinformation that the school guidance counselors give you, or the pamphlets from the college financial aid office. It’s not that anyone is trying to pull your leg. It’s just that their resources are very limited. The guidance counselors simply don’t know the alternative solutions. After all, they’re not trained as financial advisors.
It’s up to you to take responsibility for investigating ALL your options. Find out what you need to do to get financial aid and scholarship money.
2) Take action right now
Start taking action right away. It’s crucial to start planning as early as possible. And I’m not talking about savings plans here.
Becoming eligible for financial aid for college may require some careful planning and financial maneuvering — and that can take time. One of the key things you need to do is to turn assets that are counted towards eligibility for financial aid into assets that are not. And what assets might those be? Certain types of life insurance, for example.
Your kids also need time to add certain activities to their schedule, from social service to playing chess to sports to getting involved in leadership activities. You’ll be pleased to know that any of those could pay off in big scholarship money — particularly social service.
3) Get expert help
You already discovered that counting on financial aid officers to help you will only get you in trouble. But did you know that even your regular financial advisor isn’t a sure bet? He may just give you a savings plan that will force you to scrimp and save to pay for your child’s college costs yourself. He might even steer you toward the failed 529 plan. Just say no!
Here’s what to do instead: Find a wealth management advisor who has experience with helping wealthy families get college funding. You’ll need a specialist because most regular financial advisors simply don’t know about all the secrets that are involved in moving your assets out of categories that are counted and into categories that don’t count towards financial aid.
And if you want to find out more about getting financial aid for college, click here and sign up for my next FREE webinar on outside-of-the-box college funding strategies.