For many families, hiring financial professionals is a routine part of their lives. People hire CPAs or accountants to do their taxes, attorneys to draft wills and legal documents, insurance agents to protect their property and lives, and investment counselors to help manage their money. However, it is only very recently that families have considered hiring a financial professional to help with their kids’ college.
With the dramatic increase in the cost of college over the past couple of decades, paired with the extreme highs and lows of the market and the economy, many families simply can’t afford to attempt this important and expensive process on their own.
Hence a new discipline in the world of financial professionals has come to light, the financial college planner. These individuals work with families to provide a structured approach designed to save time, money, and frustration. They provide a logical approach to the process with identifiable deliverables.
There are many areas where a college planner can provide value. A thorough review of the family’s finances will identify financial aid opportunities, tax savings strategies, cash flow improvements, and most importantly, identify the amount of income and assets that a family can afford to pledge to help pay for college.
Interviewing the student is another key part of the process. Involving the student in all aspects of college planning, specifically the financial components, is a key to success. It is important that the student understands that college selection, from a financial perspective, is also a critical part of a successful plan. This message is often times taken much better when not coming from Mom and/or Dad.
College selection should involve the whole family and should be looked at from a variety of angles: cost, likelihood of employment, average length of time to degree and “fit” for student academically as well as socially. There are a lot of moving pieces here and this cannot be taken lightly. Running head to head comparisons of schools’ finances is very helpful; properly visiting and “scoring” each visit can be very useful; and knowing how to properly read a school offer when comparing to other offers are all things that a college planner will help a family navigate their way through.
The list of items that a college planner could help a family with could go on and on. The number of ways that hiring someone who does college planning for a living can help a family (that may go through the process only once or twice) is endless. If it’s not helping your family avoid the costly transferring of schools or majors, or the dreaded 5th or 6th year of school, it might be as simple as getting through the process with little stress and the confidence in knowing that you have completed the task like an experienced veteran.
College planners all charge differently and each has their own process. Finding someone who has a logical process with clear deliverables is key. Successful college planners will be able to articulate their fee to you and more importantly, share with you the value you will receive from paying that fee and working with them.
Remember, you shouldn’t have to choose between your child’s college and your retirement
