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I think where the decision gets harder is with mid-tier privates that charge as much or more than elite schools. The delta between in-state flagship and private schools tuition can be 4-5x (before any merit aid). Additional expenses should be taken into account when planning for college. Some students opt to live in dorms for all four-8 years (in our case). Additionally various costs for living, travel, books, etc should be planned. For instance, airfare and Uber prices tend to skyrocket during peak travel dates when students travel for school/ home. On breaks, Merit aid is also extremely limited, especially for those who don't meet "quotas". Open scholarships seem very few and extremely competitive. Several states have eliminate...

Your mistake is buying long-term treasuries because you wanted short-term price stability (which they are not at all intended to provide) rather than long-term income stability (which they do provide) It’s not the product’s fault If the buyer is confused and has no plan I noticed that in the 2019 thread of discussion on long-term treasury, the suggestion was made to allocate first 20% of a portfolio to long-term Treasury bonds. [Discourteous comment removed by moderator Kendall.] Whoa... If someone is buying long-term treasuries for long-term income stability, higher yields are better. Seems pretty consistent to me. I was mainly balking at inflation risk on that thread, and I got told "well, there's TIPS" - and then I went and bo...

Scenario A - Investor buys security X because they expect it to literally never go down - Security X goes down - Investor concludes that buying X was clearly a mistake, and sells at the bottom Scenario B - Investor buys security X because they want to be exposed to X, as in, it fits their portfolio - Security X goes down - Original reasoning still applies - position in X provides the investor with the exposure they wanted - Investor continues holding X, rebalancing into X as required to maintain asset allocation Your response seems arbitrary. Numerous other scenarios can exist too. Can you clarify your message? Are you myopically fixated on the mistake of the buyer? We are not talking about A security but the recovery of long-term treasury...

Just an FYI from someone with who put one child through college, has a second in college, and a third who is a HS Junior. You will be in the same exact position with pretty much every highly ranked private school in the country. You won't likely save much of anything to choose a slightly less prestigious private school like an Amherst, Swarthmore, Pomona, Reed, Washington U, NYI, Boston U, Rice, etc. You'll likely be full pay at all of those an any other top tier private and the total cost will be in the same rough ballpark as the Ivies, and even more in some cases. Most of those are "need-blind" just like the Ivies, which means they don't generally do merit scholarships but expect the wealthy do to full pay. The only private opt...

Just a couple years ago there were so many threads on long-term treasuries and how well they had done over the last decade. Interesting how the tide has turned. Remember this thread? https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=287627 Exactly! That is a good thread with sound reasoning. Your mistake is buying long-term treasuries because you wanted short-term price stability (which they are not at all intended to provide) rather than long-term income stability (which they do provide) It’s not the product’s fault If the buyer is confused and has no plan I noticed that in the 2019 thread of discussion on long-term treasury, the suggestion was made to allocate first 20% of a portfolio to long-term Treasury bonds. [Discourteous comment rem...

PowderDay9 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 30, 2023 10:39 pm Just a couple years ago there were so many threads on long-term treasuries and how well they had done over the last decade. Interesting how the tide has turned.

Remember this thread?
viewtopic.php?t=287627

Exactly!

secondopinion wrote: ↑Mon Jan 30, 2023 7:44 pm The Feb 2052 TIPS has $69.914 as the clean ask price on Fidelity with $74.773023 as the adjusted price (it has an inflation factor of 1.06950); the 1.387% real yield would be explained.
.......
The inflation adjustment is put to the principal at maturity. Unadjusted pricing will not show it. If you tried to sell the TIPS on the secondary market, they would have to respect that inflation adjustment obtained thus far.

The example you took, Feb 2052 TIPS @$69.914 today, will it mature at $100 or $100*(1+inflation)^29?
Let's assume inflation remains at 3.25% average for the next 30 years, will the TIPs mature at = $261 instead of $100 in Feb 2052?

The current real yield is 1.5%; the inflation adjustment is for the most part not paid out until maturity (except the minor adjustments to the coupon payments). The 0.125% you see on the latest TIPS is the coupon , not the real yield. The TIPS is currently selling at a discount. The price quoted is without the inflation factor included (which is a kind of multiplier). If you were to purchase the TIPS, you would see that the inflation factor gets included to the price. The current annual US Inflation Rate is at 6.45%, compared to 7.11% last month and 7.04% last year. This is higher than the long term average of 3.27%. So what is this Real Yield 1.5%? Shouldn't the TIPS be discounted at long term inflation rates? treasurydirect shows 30 year...

The current real yield is 1.5%; the inflation adjustment is for the most part not paid out until maturity (except the minor adjustments to the coupon payments). The 0.125% you see on the latest TIPS is the coupon , not the real yield. The TIPS is currently selling at a discount. The price quoted is without the inflation factor included (which is a kind of multiplier). If you were to purchase the TIPS, you would see that the inflation factor gets included to the price. The current annual US Inflation Rate is at 6.45%, compared to 7.11% last month and 7.04% last year. This is higher than the long term average of 3.27%. So what is this Real Yield 1.5%? Shouldn't the TIPS be discounted at long term inflation rates? treasurydirect shows 30 year...

What was the intention behind buying long term treasurys? I don't know exactly why I did it. The only reason I remember was 2021, the market was starting to get frothy and I was listening to the "talking heads". Invested a large sum in long-term Treasuries, which were thought to be an unheralded safeguard for the portfolios of savants during the 2008 financial crisis. Lots of long-term charts were shared on these forums of almost bulletproof returns of treasuries (cushioning perfectly to stock market calamity). If you can not sleep well because of that, I think it might be time to sell it. Be prepared to have buyers resources if long term treasurys shoot up in near future. I hope you learn from this, and invest into something you...

The current real yield is 1.5%; the inflation adjustment is for the most part not paid out until maturity (except the minor adjustments to the coupon payments). The 0.125% you see on the latest TIPS is the coupon , not the real yield. The TIPS is currently selling at a discount. The price quoted is without the inflation factor included (which is a kind of multiplier). If you were to purchase the TIPS, you would see that the inflation factor gets included to the price. The current annual US Inflation Rate is at 6.45%, compared to 7.11% last month and 7.04% last year. This is higher than the long term average of 3.27%. So what is this Real Yield 1.5%? Shouldn't the TIPS be discounted at long term inflation rates? treasurydirect shows 30 year...

Hector wrote: ↑Mon Jan 30, 2023 4:53 pm What was the intention behind buying long term treasurys?

I don't remember exactly why I did it. The only reason I remember was 2021, the market was starting to get frothy and I was listening to the "talking heads". Invested a large sum in long-term Treasuries, which were thought to be an unheralded safeguard for the portfolios of savants during the 2008 financial crisis. Lots of long-term charts were shared on these forums of almost bulletproof returns of treasuries (cushioning perfectly to stock market calamity).

I had perfect timing to purchase EDV as a lumpsum chunk in August 2021! What an investment decision it turned out to be, with the value down 34% from the purchase price! Did I understand correctly that it'd take a 52% recovery just to break even? I looked up that 10 years returns being a measly 1.5% and the 15-year returns being a whopping 3.7%. I further found that the standard deviation for both EDV and the stock market over the past 5 years is above 19%. Wondering why should I hold EDV and not shift that chunk to SPY for faster recovery. Should I hold EDV as part of my portfolio? Simple math tells me that EDV sucks worse than the stock market = with high volatility with measly expected returns. And I should just cut the losses on EDV an...

muffins14 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 30, 2023 6:48 am Ideally, you buy investments because they fit into your long - term plan.

EDV is a great investment if you want a non-zero allocation to bonds, and will need the money 20-50 years from now.

Do you want bonds?

As you say 20-50 years horizon, aren't stocks better for such a long term? Why even bother with EDV?

I had perfect timing to purchase EDV as a lumpsum chunk in August 2021! What an investment decision it turned out to be, with the value down 34% from the purchase price! Did I understand correctly that it'd take a 52% recovery just to break even? I looked up that 10 years returns being a measly 1.5% and the 15-year returns being a whopping 3.7%. I further found that the standard deviation for both EDV and the stock market over the past 5 years is above 19%. Wondering why should I hold EDV and not shift that chunk to SPY for faster recovery. Should I hold EDV as part of my portfolio? Simple math tells me that EDV sucks worse than the stock market = with high volatility with measly expected returns. And I should just cut the losses on EDV and...

SnowBog wrote: ↑Sun Jan 29, 2023 8:07 pm
FZDXX has a slightly higher return than it's non-premium (and no minimum) alternative SPRXX.

As of 1/29, FZDXX 7-day SEC yield was 4.28% vs 4.16% for SPRXX. Assuming the rate remained the same for a year, on $10k, the FZDXX would come out $12 ahead.

that seems a reasonable alternative.

I think Fidelity onlt has a $5M limit for auctions. So TD's higher limit may be useful for some whales. I just played with auction order at Fidelity, and the limit is $10M. When I tried quantity 11,000 ($11M face value), I got this message: https://i.postimg.cc/CxbYc8zX/image.png [Personally identifiable content removed by admin LadyGeek. Content was removed by Kevin M in his post] Kevin Hold on, isn't the current auction rate over 4.8%+. Is Fidelity charging 0.2% in fees? The current auction hasn't occurred yet so the yield (officially) isn't known. Brokerages supply an estimated yield, but it is just an estimate. There are other threads on this board that suggest Fidelity gives low estimates. (There is no Fidelity fee.) Good to know. I'd...

Kevin M wrote: ↑Sun Jan 29, 2023 11:50 am

anon_investor wrote: ↑Sun Jan 29, 2023 11:40 am I think Fidelity onlt has a $5M limit for auctions. So TD's higher limit may be useful for some whales.

I just played with auction order at Fidelity, and the limit is $10M. When I tried quantity 11,000 ($11M face value), I got this message:



[Personally identifiable content removed by admin LadyGeek. Content was removed by Kevin M in his post]

Kevin

Hold on, isn't the current auction rate over 4.8%+. Is Fidelity charging 0.2% in fees?

UpperNwGuy wrote: ↑Sun Jan 29, 2023 3:35 pm Why are you buying T-Bills instead of index funds of the same duration?

I am still evaluating. but here are my thoughts:
1) For one, it may save on management cost. For 3M Tbill, The difference in performance is = MF management cost. 0.2% pa.

2) Treasurydirect simplifies the buying process, making management fee redundant

3) Current Rates are quite decent -thinking about locking for 6month-1year, instead of fluctuating rates with MF

4) Not very happy with the brokerage, so diversifying is in the books to keep cash else where.

I attempted an online transfer of FDZXX with Fidelity just now, but access is no longer there. Contacted a customer rep who confirmed that it's company-wide policy and everyone has to call in to transfer mutual funds now. Rep checked policy on minimum balance and successfully transferred funds. No hiccups this time. Glad you got it done. But what's this about policy not allowing online transfer of MF"s? I've done it numerous times, including on Jan 20, 2023, when I moved several MF shares from my t-IRA to my Roth account. Does this new policy only apply to taxable accounts or to accounts with two different registrations (e.g., individual and joint)? I'm curious. that is strange. I have one individual and one joint account & I can ...

OP, as another poster mentioned, try online transfer. I had transferred FZDXX online between my two Fidelity brokerages and CMA multiple times. That was a couple of years ago though and all three accounts had same title (as opposed to individual vs joint), so YMMV, but easy and worth a try. It never crossed my mind that my transfers would be considered not-ok, as I was organizing my holdings (FZDXX and other funds) into different accounts that had different purposes. Thanks for sharing experience. I don't think you did something that was "not-ok". I think some people are just passing their judgement unfairly. If fidelity had objections, they wouldn't have allowed online systems to do it. I attempted an online transfer of FDZXX wi...

I think the prospectus says $10k min holding, though it is not really enforced. But their system may require a transfer of that size. You can just try transferring a few shares to see if that works. No harm if it doesn't. The $10K min is for an IRA or tax deferred account, $100K is min for a taxable account. I am not talking about the min initial purchase. I am talking about the not enforced minimum holding amount of $10k. The prospectus states the following: If your fund balance falls below $10,000 worth of shares for any reason and you do not increase your balance, Fidelity may sell all of your shares and send the proceeds to you after providing you with at least 30 days' notice to reestablish the minimum balance. Your shares will be sol...

What other word would you use for a person trying to circumvent a rule? That said, it WAS poor taste for the CSR to use that word in front of you. He (she?) should have just said 'no, that does not meet our minimum transfer for that fund'. Brokerages, as with all things in life, have all kinds of rules you are expected to follow. The way I interpreted the wording: his supervisor told him that some customers are trying to cheat Fidelity by transferring a few shares (small amount) to bypass the minimum investment requirement and they wouldn't allow me to transfer a share to the second account. ... was that it was carefully phrased NOT to accuse the caller (OP) of cheating. Instead, it pointed out what " some other " people have don...

I don't think AI is anywhere close to beating the stock market consistently. I have tracked a few ETFs that pick stocks based on AI models and guess what - Mr. Market beats them!

Too early to say if AI will. In the stock market, it's ALWAYS hindsight that gives bragging rights to few lucky ones.

chatGPT is still very dumb. Long way to go.

IMHO....

If I was the institution, if I had a fund that had $100k minimum to invest but the account only had $1 in it, I'd not allow these transactions either. Similar to vanguard dropping you down from admiral to investor share classes if you are under the limit for long enough time. I am glad you are not the institution. I have 2 accounts. Fidelity doesn't have a concept of admiral class for FZDXX. And as a result of customer service, customers could move to other places. costing them management fees which pays salaries of these reps! Won't it be better to convey that instead of $1 - the minimum should be X$ to transfer instead of being rude? Even big stores stopped caring for small mistakes on self-checkout shelves. As they put self-checkout to ...

I own fidelity fzdxx in my personal account to manage cash for kids education and emergency funds. I recently opened additional joint account with my son to manage his education expenses and wanted to transfer just 1 share of FZDXX from my personal account to the joint account. The minimum investment requirement for FZDXX is $100K. I called Fidelity to transfer some shares to the second account to better manage the funds, but was redirected to their "active trader desk". The agent put me on hold and came back saying that his supervisor told him that some customers are trying to cheat Fidelity by transferring a few shares (small amount) to bypass the minimum investment requirement and they wouldn't allow me to transfer a share to t...

Call_Me_Op wrote: ↑Sun Jan 29, 2023 8:39 am

WarAdmiral wrote: ↑Sun Jan 29, 2023 6:47 am I am looking to park some cash in a 6 month T-bill. The current yield as per WSJ is 4.836%

My question is - If i hold this t-bill to maturity, am i guaranteed 4.836% yield, regardless of interest rate hikes that may happen during this 6 month duration ?

You should be aware that the yield on the 6-month is a bit elevated because of fears associated with debt ceiling not being raised. I am not commenting on the rationality of such fears.

So what happens if debt ceiling is not raised? Do T-bills lose everything or just the interest part?

Do people see any advantage in buying Tbills at treasurydirect vs. Buying it from Fidelity or brokerage?

PSLF is yet another interesting program... so many knobs to turn to

I am curious to know what the largest T-bill you have purchased in one chunk is. Are you willing to share? I am new to T-bills. I placed an order ($2k at maturity) with Treasury Direct for a 4-week auto-renewable T-bill to test the waters. My understanding is that T-bills auto-renewal can be stopped at any time, and they will send the money after the next maturity (if I stop the auto-renewal). I also placed a similar order at Fidelity for a new T-bill as well (with no renewal). The following information may help newbees to T-bills in understanding how much they can comfortably invest in Treasurydirect without the need for trial and error. For example, it may be beneficial to start with a smaller investment through to a broker before transfe...

While we are confident that he would have been accepted to other institutions, we have chosen to accept this offer and enroll him in this particular school. Not to unnecessarily pry, but did your son choose this offer of admission, did you choose it for him/her or did you all choose it together? And if he was part of this decision, what information (if any) did he consider as far as costs? In other words, was his decision based upon the expectation that his costs would be covered without the need for work or loans? It was his decision. He worked hard for getting in ED. None of that was ours. Its only fair for him for parents to pay for tuition as they did for elder one. We saved up in 529 that he knows, sticker shock is new to him and to u...

One more comment regarding student loans. While I know you mentioned that "One sad point is that this plan requires 4 years' worth of loans to be taken out on kids. We wanted to be proud parents who funded our children through college and graduated debt-free", for the very vast majority that is simply not a goal that is achievable, particularly if their child(ren) attend expensive private (or even flagship state) universities and/or pursue an education that isn't completed in four (4) years. College costs have increased significantly over the past forty (40) years as a percentage of HHI. Remember that you always have the option to gift your child(ren) funds to help them with student loan payments. You and your spouse could each g...

One more comment regarding student loans. While I know you mentioned that "One sad point is that this plan requires 4 years' worth of loans to be taken out on kids. We wanted to be proud parents who funded our children through college and graduated debt-free", for the very vast majority that is simply not a goal that is achievable, particularly if their child(ren) attend expensive private (or even flagship state) universities and/or pursue an education that isn't completed in four (4) years. College costs have increased significantly over the past forty (40) years as a percentage of HHI. Remember that you always have the option to gift your child(ren) funds to help them with student loan payments. You and your spouse could each g...

If we knew your financials, you'd get better advice. For example: By the time they reach age 50ish (with a kid going off to college) many high earners (which you apparently are) have a solid retirement nest egg and can afford to cut back on retirement a bit. Not eliminate savings, of course, but reduce. If you have a nice pile saved, most of your growth will come from existing savings not new contributions. Therefore, cutting back $20k (or whatever) for 4 years and using that to help pay for tuition is not going to dent your plan. In some cases this may be preferable to a loan. Do you? At this stage in our lives, my wife and I are in our early 50s and have not yet fully prepared for our retirement goals. We are currently trying to catch up...

OP, we don't want to pry, but perhaps this could be best approached by telling us more about your financials: for example, how much in tax deferred, how much in taxable, annual household income and how stable it is, annual expenses and how much you could cut them before it becomes disagreeable, etc. @Tomato; For now, I'll hold off on sharing my actual numbers for a bit longer. Some posters pointed me to a few financial calculators on university websites for estimating costs. I can give you numbers if they can help in any way. On these calculators, it is better to assume "borderline" numbers for every line item. Net net is that i posted my revised plan above. Revised plan requires me to divert only after-tax retirement contribution.

Thanks Moderator for reopening this thread. On this thread I found very good information, that is helping me replan. I had missed out on so many factors and was sweating over FA only. I played with online calculators plugging in salary + assets. Our current situation = we qualify for almost 0 FA so not worth wasting time on appeal yet. But I have replanned it over the last week as follows. turns out it may be less complicated than I imagined so far. The biggest hurdle to cross for replanning is to accept the huge burden and agree to payup. I gained a lot of mental peace by accepting the reality that I am not making any huge mistakes or missing out on any chances at FA. (except that i should have done it 4 years ago!). The answer is to pay u...

An unsecured inter-personal loan is, I think, super easy to execute. Draft a 1-page document (presumably templates are online). "Joe loans, and Sally accepts, $15,000 on 01/30/XXXX. Interest rate is X%, compounded at Y interval, payments to be made on this date, principal is amortized in this way, full principal is due 01/15/XXXX", etc. That's an unsecured loan, and may fall behind future mortgages, etc. in security. But of course, they're your kids, so... Whether that loan would meet the standards that might play well with OTHER (more official) educational loans/grants/stipends, or perhaps, loan forgiveness programs, is hard to say. Also be aware that there's a minimum interest rate you must charge family members on substantial ...

I am also starting to see some value in loans for education for our situation. I am particularly intrigued by the idea of a loan for the last two years of college for the elder one while diverting all that money to fund the younger one. But instead of allowing my children to take out loans, what if we loan them the money officially instead of getting from 3rd party or fafsa? After all Ivy wants us to pay them from our savings. Has anyone on this forum had experience with loaning money from personal savings and retirement funds to pay for their children's education? If so, what are some things to consider when planning for such an arrangement? After conducting a quick search, it seems that loan rates are very attractive for me/my wife and to...

During 2008 mayhem, the Reserve Primary Fund broke the buck when its net asset value (NAV) fell to $0.97 cents per share. I can't find data on what happened to FZDXX in 2008. It may have sunk too? Tbills, they are backed by US Government to pay you back full. In your situation, state taxes savings seem extra bonus I had money in FZDXX back then. No Fidelity MM funds broke the buck (fell below $1) during the 2007/2008 financial situation. I believe Fidelity (being a private organization) injected money into their MM funds to prevent them from falling and absorbed any losses from the commercial paper side that might of caused them to go below $1. As I also recall, there was no freeze on withdraws from any Fidelity MM funds in 2007/2008 eithe...

During 2008 mayhem, the Reserve Primary Fund broke the buck when its net asset value (NAV) fell to $0.97 cents per share. I can't find data on what happened to FZDXX in 2008. It may have sunk too?

Tbills, they are backed by US Government to pay you back full. In your situation, state taxes savings seem extra bonus

any benefit to opening 529 account for purpose of tax reduction with no plan to have kids? (read: I am not having/cannot have/do not want kids) I could see myself taking some qualifying course in the future, but if not, wouldn't the growth likely still make the 10% still worthwhile? any "creative" uses for 529 for someone with no children? You can do calculations to compare the potential returns of different investment options. For example, if you have $100K saved in a 529 plan that grows at 7% over 10 years, it will double to $200K. However, when you withdraw the funds, you will have to pay a $10K penalty and taxes on the remaining $90K gain, which at a 35% tax rate (fed + state), would leave you with a net amount of $158,500. O...

@Tomato, @psteinx, @pdxnative - I get it. There is a lot to digest from this thread, I have some big gaps to fill personally. Let me summarize: • Situation: o I was seeking advice for paying 2 IVY schools bills starting fall’23. I IVY bill already on paycheck. o Planning 8 years education for 2 kids o I am in 50s, underfunded 529, still saving for retirement o Semi stable job, worried about recession o Wife works, together we are in 28-32% tax bracket. Here is what I have understood from the thread so far: * Financial AID considers Gross Income (before retirement / tax deferred savings) AND net assets. * Reduced tuition consideration looks for gross-income & not AGI. Fafsa mostly gives you loan options. We'd still try. * almost 50% stud...

Net price calculator. Every school has one on the financial aid page. It’s a quick estimate of the financial aid you should expect based on income and assets. OK, aThe school's financial aid calculator asks for parents' gross income (total annual pre-tax earnings, including 401k, etc.), while the FAFSA/CSS asks for AGI (adjusted gross income). With the college calculator, we have to be at 100% tuition. I expect the FAFSA/CSS may offer some loans (~$15K). Basically, the school is asking me to send them my retirement and post-tax savings money, as I don't make enough to pay for our household expenses and tuition from my net pay. I am in early 50s, so retirement savings is also on our mind. For Winter's semester payment for my other kid, I ha...

Pdxnative wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 4:06 pm OP, several experienced posters here have asked whether your income level is too high, absent assets, to receive aid. I suggested you go to the NPC to answer that question. Have you done that? Would your income make you eligible if assets weren’t in the picture?

What is NPC?

1. Why does it matter how often one is "caught" providing false information if you don't intend to do that?? Simply be completely honest and candid and you have nothing to worry about. Hopefully your referral to finding "information that we really want to see" doesn't reflect a desire on your part to present false information in hopes of increasing any aid offer. Honesty and integrity are qualities to admire in others and model for your children! :happy @galawdawg = You are misrepresenting my statements and using a comment to attack on my integrity when you lecture "You should model some qualities in your children." I hope you can provide more relevant information to the discussion instead of lecturing and bei...

I am just getting started in looking into FAFSA and CSS more deeply. One question that immediately comes to mind is how often they actually verify and check the information provided on the forms. I understand that there are serious consequences if someone is caught providing false information, but how often do they check? With a quick google search, it appears that many people may be lying on their FAFSA and CSS Profiles. However, I am not sure if this is accurate or if I am interpreting the information incorrectly. Sometime we find information that we really want to see :oops: Another question I have is about the strategy of putting assets in an irrevocable trust and not disclosing them on the forms. Is this a common practice? I would appr...

First, congratulations on your kid getting into an Ivy League school. You must be very proud. As the old saying goes" You can finance tuition, but you can't finance retirement."Therefore, I wouldn't sacrifice retirement at age 50 to pay for an Ivy League tuition. The fact is you less years to accumulate savings then someone in their 40's. If your kid could get into an Ivy League, why can't he get into another Ivy League with a more generous scholarship package? If they can, this can save you a lot of money. My parents made sure I had skin in the game. Therefore, when I graduated, I had to pay some of the money back to them. Even at your kid's age, I would have thought twice about going into debt for a college education to the tun...

DonIce wrote: ↑Mon Jan 23, 2023 10:55 pm If you own any I bonds or EE bonds, I believe these have a favorable tax treatment when used for education expenses.

Not completely true, use of Ibonds/EE comes with lots of restrictions including a very low-Income cap to be able to use funds for education - tax free.

With the revision to the tax bracket info, I’d suggest playing with the NPCs to see if adjusting the variables would change your FA situation. For example, the rental isn’t helping you. If your kids are at schools that don’t consider home equity, and you currently have a mortgage, you could sell the rental and put all that equity in your primary home. That could help with years 2-4 for this child. Also, did I understand correctly that your other child is also at, or planning to attend, an Ivy? I’d make sure both FA offices know about the other child in college. If the second child is already at school you might find the FA for future years is revised. Also, if there was a significant change in income it is well worth calling each FA office...

Our first born just graduated from a UC school as out of state student. COA slightly less than Ivies. First year I spent a lot of time on the FAFSA and just got offered loans so we paid full freight the whole way and never bothered with the FAFSA again. We have two kids and a late start on 529 due to long training pipeline for my career. Anyway I decided to pay out of pocket for kid #1 and continued to contribute the max deductible amount to both kids’ 529s (and still do) with plans to transfer kid #1 529 to kid #2 when the time comes. If you don’t have another child in the pipeline then in your place I’d want to defer using the 529 as long as possible for some tax free growth. Writing a check for $6k every month definitely induced some an...