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You work hard to save money for your child’s future college costs. But did you know that there is more than one way to save in a CollegeAdvantage Direct 529 plan? You can visit the CollegeAdvantage Direct 529 plan website and follow the life stage guide to calculate the best ways to optimize your account. You can also contribute to your tax return as well as add some disappearing expenses (i.e. costs that are in a family’s budget for a limited time span) to the account. Another way to benefit from contributing to a 529 plan is by joining Upromise. With this membership, you’re earning cash back as you shop online, dine out, fill your gas tank, buy groceries, book hotels, and more. By linking your Upromise account to your CollegeAdvantage Direct Plan, your earnings are automatically transferred on a periodic basis, subject to a $25 minimum. If you sign up for automatic recurring contributions, you could transfer money from your bank account to the Ohio 529 plan.

After considering every potential option available when opening a 529, you may even begin to wonder how others can help contribute to your child’s 529 savings plan. For example, after celebrating your child’s first birthday, you may look around to find toys scattered, some of which haven’t even been used. This brings up the question: Is there a better way to celebrate this milestone? The answer: Yes. Instead of receiving unnecessary toys from family members, consider asking for the gift of college by having loved ones contribute to your child’s 529 plan.

Family and friends want to give meaningful gifts for your child’s milestones. By asking them to consider gifts for college in lieu of gifts at baby showers, birthdays, holidays, graduations, and many other special occasions, your child’s future will only continue to benefit. The first, and easiest, option for CollegeAdvantage Direct 529 plan gift contributions is through Ugift. Ugift makes it easy for an account owner to set up a code which will authorize gift givers to donate directly to a 529 plan online without needing the actual account number. They can even check to make sure their electronic contribution is securely transferred from their bank account by visiting Ugift529.com. It's that easy. Once a gift giver has the code, they can continue to make one-time or recurring electronic gifts for college without fees. Plus, if the gift giver is an Ohio taxpayer, they can also deduct up to $4,000 in contributions per beneficiary, per year, from their state taxable income. Their gift contribution must be made payable directly to the account, not to the child.

Have gift givers who may prefer paying by check? Simply encourage them to write a check payable to the Ohio Tuition Trust Authority, rather than the beneficiary, and give them the 11-digit account number to add to the memo line. You can then mail it with an Additional Contribution Form to the listed address and it will be added to your CollegeAdvantage Direct 529 Plan account. Again, if the gift giver is a taxpayer in Ohio, they can deduct their own gift contributions from their state taxable income.

Another option to consider? Having heart-to-heart conversations with your child’s grandparents. It has been shown that a large number of 529 plan gift givers are grandparents who place a high value on higher education. After you talk with them, they may wish to make a gift to your existing 529 plan or they may want to establish their own account for your child. As the account owner, the grandparents will oversee the account and determine when to make withdrawals to pay for your child’s higher education expenses. They also control transfers between accounts, which is especially flexible if there is a need to transfer surplus funds from one grandchild to another. Or they can transfer their 529 account funds into an account that you’ve already established as college approaches.

Grandparents who are Ohio taxpayers can take the deduction from their state income tax for gift contributions to CollegeAdvantage accounts of up to $4,000 in contributions per beneficiary, per year. Make sure that your grandparents are aware that there are gift tax considerations that may come into play depending on the amount of the gift contributions. The current annual gift tax exclusion is up to $15,000 per person to each beneficiary, per year, but that amount is inclusive of all gifts to a beneficiary, not just gifts to a 529 account. Additionally, your child’s grandparents can use 529 plans as part of their estate-planning strategy. As this is a complicated area of tax law and strategies vary from person to person, please have them consult with a tax or financial advisor for information on this option.

As the next celebration approaches, when family and friends ask what they can give, encourage them to give the gift of college by contributing to your CollegeAdvantage Direct 529 Plan.

Posted on August 6, 2019