Graduation is Drawing Near… Make Smart Withdrawals from College Savings Accounts It seems like yesterday when you were deciding how to begin saving for your child’s college education and now graduation is looming. You may be wondering, now what? How do you go about accessing your children’s college savings—529 college savings account, money market account, or other savings fund—to pay tuition bills? Whether you are preparing your recent grad for college life, or just comparing different 529 plans for your newborn, the resources below will offer guidance on how and when to access college savings funds while continuing to maximize your investments for in and outside of the classroom. 6 Ways to Stretch Your College Savings Follow these tips for when and how to tap into college savings.   Start Talking. Talk with your son or daughter about nontuition related expenditures and text and tech needs so that you both know what you expect the other to cover.   Play Catch-up. If you’ve come up short, consider these options to catch up on college savings.   Community Q & A See what others are saying about saving and paying for college. Q: My 20yo is ready to go off to college in the fall and I'm a mess! What things should I prepare for? Things that an inexperienced person wouldn't think of? I have my shopping list of "dorm stuff": linens, towels, new laptop, etc. Also, does anyone know if I can get a credit or debit card that will only accept certain things and to a certain dollar limit? Thanks, – Mrs.LJSmith A: Create an account that you both can control. Get a debit card with spending and withdrawal limits (I love credit unions). A prepaid debit from community financial resources may be the best option if your student either is prone to overdraft or has limited or no experience managing money. Agree on a budget understanding that it is an evolving process and that there are some things that you won't know until they occur. – SageMoney				Follow us: Share this:     Encourage your children to take advantage of financial education courses at school.   Graduation 2012 Whether your child is graduating from high school or is home from college, now is the perfect time to talk about money>>   Already taken care of college expenses? Plan for your own future and retirement goals>>   What are you relying on the most to pay for your child’s college expenses? Take our poll>>   SAM’s family of resources: Plan for retirement at myretirementpaycheck.org. Confess your bad spending habits at spendster.org. Make sure your kids are learning financial basics in high school and college.
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