savings_stories_CUBBON

In 2015, CollegeAdvantage celebrated its 25th anniversary. In honor of this milestone, many longtime account owners shared their Saving Stories and how using CollegeAdvantage helped them achieve their goals. We are fortunate to have these encouraging stories of how families prioritized their children’s higher education and are sharing them again. 

My wife, Denise, and I had tremendous support from our parents which allowed us to attend college and law school, graduating from both with almost no debt. We married immediately after we passed the Ohio Bar Exam in 1981 and within 4 ½ years were proud parents of three beautiful children; four years later came another one.  We never questioned whether or not our children would go to college. We were both successful in our careers. We knew we would need to save for college but never, ever imagined how expensive college would ultimately be.

When we first learned of the CollegeAdvantage program, we immediately enrolled each of our children (well, the youngest might have had to wait until he was born!) and then we invested aggressively. We lived well but within our means. We did not drive expensive cars and buy a lot of luxury items. But we did funnel any extra money we had into the CollegeAdvantage accounts. When grandparents gave the kids money for their birthdays, we invested that, too, noting that the house was already overwhelmed with toys. Ultimately, we were able to have enough for four years of in-state college tuition and fees saved for each of our kids. This created a tremendous amount of peace of mind for Denise and me, as we knew that whatever happened to us or to our careers, the kids would have their educations.

In the end, our oldest graduated from the University of Notre Dame, and the other three graduated from my alma mater, Bucknell University. Our oldest went on to graduate from the University of Toledo College of Law and our other daughter is currently in a master’s program in Educational Administration at the University of Dayton. We are proud of our children and thankful that we were able to give them the same educational opportunities that we had been given.

The CollegeAdvantage funds did not cover everything, and I have to tell you that I was a little stressed the year that we had three kids in college at the same time, but we could never have accomplished this without CollegeAdvantage. So, it is my pleasure to send this email sharing our appreciation for the program.

And there is a very happy final chapter to our story. Our oldest and her husband have blessed us with two beautiful granddaughters. Although they live in Atlanta, they were both enrolled in CollegeAdvantage as soon as they were born and they will share the benefits of this program!

Stuart Cubbon

Toledo, Ohio

This Saving Story was originally published on April 22, 2015.
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529 Short Course: New Parents

5 things every new parent needs to know about saving for education

  1. Why Ohio 529?
    529s are specifically created for higher education savings. Unlike a traditional banking account, a 529 account benefits from tax-free earnings and tax-free withdrawals. For Ohio residents, there is also a state income tax deduction for those contributions.
  2. It’s simple to start.
    You can open your 529 account online in minutes with as little as $25. With ready-made portfolio options, you don’t have to be a financial expert to feel confident in your savings plan choices.
  3. Set it and forget it with automatic deposits.
    The sooner you start saving, the longer your account benefits from the Ohio 529 tax advantages as well as compound interest. Many new parents take their 529 contributions off their to-do list by setting up small automatic deposits from either their banking accounts or paycheck. Also, with our ReadySave 529 app, it’s also easy to track and adjust your account right on your mobile device.
  4. Save for college, career training, and more.
    Ohio 529 can be used at over 30,000 schools of all kinds, nationwide, including universities; community colleges; trade, technical, and vocational schools; certificate programs; and apprenticeships. Your Ohio 529 account can also pay for K-12 tuition at a public, private, or religious school. And, if it’s not needed for educational expenses, you can now roll over your 529 to a Roth IRA.
  5. Others can help.
    It’s easy for family and friends to contribute to your child’s account and receive tax benefits for themselves. You can share your account’s unique Ugift number with others to contribute online without creating their own 529 accounts. Those who live in Ohio will also receive a state income tax deduction for their contributions. Also, you can sign up to have reminder emails sent to you and loved ones for the big milestones in your child’s life.

Hoping to find gold at the end of the rainbow? If you are saving with Ohio 529 CollegeAdvantage, you have the benefit of Ugift with your account, which is savings gold.

Ugift makes it easy for others to give to your Ohio 529 account. With Ugift, you generate a unique code which allows loved ones to contribute to your Ohio 529 savings plan without needing the actual account number. Once they have the Ugift code, your friends and family can visit Ugift529.com to make their online gifts directly to your 529.

When friends and family ask for gift ideas, share that you are saving for your child’s future education with Ohio 529. Then invite them to join in with gift contributions to your Ohio 529 account with Ugift. After all, a gift for your child’s education will truly last a lifetime.

The quickest and easiest way to pass along your child’s Ugift code is with the ReadySave 529 app, which you can access as an Ohio 529 CollegeAdvantage account owner. At the bottom of every page is an Ugift icon. Click on the gift symbol to view your Ugift code which you can send immediately as an invitation via texts, emails, and Facebook/Instagram chats from your phone.

Or log into your account online to view your child’s Ugift code to send to family and friends who would like to give the gift of education.

The Ugift code doesn’t expire. Which means whenever there is an occasion to celebrate­ like baby showers, holidays, birthdays, graduations, and special achievements, your family and friends can give to your Ohio 529 account. And they can choose to contribute as much as they want whenever they want. It can be a one-time gift or recurring gift; all they need is that Ugift code. Your loved ones’ contributions - whether big or small – will add up over the years. Added to the power of compound interest, these gifts will power your 529 savings to cover even more college and career training costs.

An added bonus for gift givers who live in Ohio: They are also eligible to receive a state income tax deduction for their Ohio 529 gift contributions, up to $4,000 per year, per beneficiary.

To learn more about all of the gifting options with Ohio 529 and order cards for special occasions, visit  529 Gift Central.

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