Updates Coming To Ohio 529 Website

Ohio’s 529 Plan, CollegeAdvantage, wants to provide everyone the best experience when you visit our website, whether to learn more about 529 plans and saving for higher education, review investment options, open a college savings account, or take care of account maintenance and review your savings.

Based on research and data received with current account owners and potential savers, we will be implementing new changes to enhance the experience at CollegeAdvantage.com on Tuesday, May 11.

Some of the changes you will find are:

1. New informational pages – Learn, Plan, Start, and Manage. The intuitive layouts best match the stages and informational needs for anyone — parents, grandparents, loved ones — who wants to save for a higher education.

• The first page, Learn, is the best resource for basic 529 college savings plan knowledge. This section is designed to answer your questions about Ohio’s 529 Plan, and when to start.  A new chart has been created to compare college savings options, including tax advantages, eligible expenses, flexibility of use and other items. With this resource, it’s easy to see why a 529 college savings account is the best option to place your hard-earned money to fulfill your dreams for your children.
• Plan is your next step to start your college savings journey, finding the right savings approach for your family. This section has a simpler layout to assist in reviewing available investment options. From ready-made portfolios, to crafting your own portfolio from individual investment options, to the safety of FDIC-insured banking options, Ohio’s 529 Plan partners with leading investment managers Vanguard, Dimensional Fund Advisors, and Fifth Third Bank to bring you the best choices.
• The next section, Start, guides you through the steps to open an Ohio 529 account. There’s even a checklist of what information to gather before you open an account to expedite the process.
• Once you start saving with Ohio’s 529 Plan, the Manage section is your go-to resource for account maintenance, account savings strategies by your child’s life stage, performance and guidance on how to add financial gifts to your college savings plan from loved ones. This section also offers quick access to the resources needed manage your account.

2. Info Hub. Like a one-stop shop, the Info Hub quickly links you to the information as well as calculators and tools you need to shape the 529 savings account that best suits your family’s needs. As you travel to the different stages on your college savings journey, the info hub will reflect the current information you will need.

3. Accessible to all. Anyone can save in a 529 saving account and therefore, information on CollegeAdvantage.com needs to be easily accessible. Our content has been modified to make it easier to find the information you need.

These changes are the first round of updates we will be implementing on CollegeAdvantage.com in 2021.

For more than 30 years, Ohio’s 529 Plan, CollegeAdvantage, has been helping families across the nation save for their children’s higher education. Ohio’s 529 Plan covers qualified costs at any four-year college or university, two-year community college, trade or vocational school, apprenticeship approved by the U.S. Labor Department, or certificate program nationwide that accepts federal financial aid. If you’d like to learn more about the tax-advantaged way to save for college, explore Ohio’s 529 Plan — The Plan That Can.