NEW STRATEGIES FOR COLLEGE FUNDING：AN ADVISOR'S GUIDE(W/CD)

A PROFESSIONAL GUIDE TO PLANNING FOR COLLEGE FUNDING

A properly designed college savings plan is key to providing a college education as well as the best way to avoid any surprises. Yet many parents fail to realize how much time, money, and commitment are needed to accomplish this goal. As an advisor, you must guide your clients through this process with poise and confidence, and J.K. Lasser Pro New Strategies for College Funding: An Advisor's Guide with its companion CD-ROM will help you do just that.

Filled with expert advice, real-world case studies, and invaluable tools, techniques, worksheets, and checklists, this comprehensive guide will allow you to connect with your clients and plan for their children's college education in the best way possible.

Organized into three complementary sections, J.K. Lasser Pro New Strategies for College Funding will help you:
* Quantify the college problem for your clients and communicate effectively and motivationally to each of them by using tools such as The College Savings Calculator(TM), The Financial Aid Test(TM), and The College Funding Integrator(TM), as well as spreadsheets that allow you to calculate exactly what clients need to save on a monthly basis
* Choose the tools you need to implement the plan-Coverdell Education Savings Account (formerly the Education IRA), Qualified Tuition Savings, Prepaid Tuition Plans, Savings Bonds, and much more-while balancing income tax strategies, financial aid strategies, and control of money issues
* Put the plan together and build in appropriate exit strategies to give your plan the flexibility it needs


And this is just a sampling of the expertise this book provides. Pick up J.K. Lasser Pro New Strategies for College Funding and find out how to create and implement a successful college savings plan that is right for each of your clients' personal needs and goals.

Please visit our Web site at www.jklasser.com

RAYMOND D. LOEWE, CLU, ChFC, is a nationally recognized expert in college financial planning. His firm, College Money, founded in 1978, is one of the oldest continually operating college financial planning companies in the country. He also provides training and consulting services to other financial planning professionals. Loewe is the developer of The College Money System and directs the Financial Resources Network, Inc., a financial consulting firm. Loewe holds an MBA from Wharton and a BS in electrical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.
KC DEMPSTER, ChFC, has been a part of the college planning industry for over fifteen years. Dempster is the Director of Program Development for College Money, of Marlton, New Jersey. In this capacity she is involved with developing, marketing, and training financial service professionals to market their businesses through college planning. Dempster graduated summa cum laude from Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania with a BS in business administration.

Acknowledgments.

Introduction.

PART I: Quantifying the College Problemand Communicating with Parents.

CHAPTER 1. Putting Together the College Cost Forecast(Understanding College Costs and Inflation).

Understanding College Costs.

Good Information Is Difficult to Get.

Using Today s College Costs to Forecast FutureCollege Costs.

Understanding College Inflation.

Completing the College Forecast Model.

Using the Forecast Tables.

Introducing The College Savings Calculator™.

CHAPTER 2. Communicating with Your Client UsingThe College Savings Calculator™.

Working with The College Savings Calculator™.

Helping Clients Set Realistic Goals.

Helping Clients Quantify Risk and Reward toOvercome College Inflation.

Helping Clients Understand the Costof Delayed Savings.

Summary.

CHAPTER 3. The Impact of Financial Aid.

Do Not Skip This Step.

What Is Financial Aid?

How Is Need-Based Financial AidEligibility Determined?

Understanding How Asset Titling CanAffect Financial Aid.

What Is a Financial Aid Test?

Using the Financial Aid Test in Savings Plan Design.

CHAPTER 4. Communicating with Your Client UsingThe Financial Aid Test™.

Working with The Financial Aid Test™ Software.

Doing a Financial Aid Test.

Exploring the Effect of Plan Designon Financial Aid.

Summary.

CHAPTER 5. The College Funding Time Horizon.

The Four Ways to Pay for College.

Defining the Three College Funding Periods.

Strategies to Make the College Funding Plan Work.

CHAPTER 6. Communicating with Your Client UsingThe College Funding Integrator™.

Introduction.

Working with The College Funding Integrator™.

Exploring Time Horizons in Developingthe College Plan.

PART II: Exploring College PlanningTools and Products.

CHAPTER 7: Beginning Plan Design UsingThe Attribute Evaluation Worksheet™.

Using the Attribute Evaluation Worksheet™.

The Importance of Account Titling.

CHAPTER 8. Exploring the College Funding Tools.

U.S. Savings Bond College Savings Plan.

Education IRA (Coverdell Education SavingsAccount) College Funding Plan.

IRA College Savings Plan.

Roth IRA College Savings Plan.

The Simple Plan™.

Life Insurance College Savings Plan.

Retirement Plan College Savings Plan.

Direct Tuition Payments to the Collegeby Grandparents.

CHAPTER 9: Understanding and Using Qualified Tuition Plans.

Prepaid Plans.

Savings Plans.

Rules and Requirements for QTPs.

Key Planning Attributes.

UGMA/UTMA Accounts.

Plan Costs.

Other Considerations.

Private Prepaid Tuition Plans.

Summary.

Using the Tool Comparison Chart.

PART III: Putting the Plan Together.

CHAPTER 10. Implementing the Plan: Case Studies.

The College Savings Plan Checklist.

Case Studies.

Other Situations of Note.

Final Comments.

APPENDIX A: The College Savings Calculator™: SavingsRequired for the 20 Benchmark Colleges.

Western Region State (Resident).

Western Region State (Nonresident).

Western Region Private (Medium Cost).

Western Region Private (High Cost).

Western Region Ivy League.

Midwest Region State (Resident).

Midwest Region State (Nonresident).

Midwest Region Private (Medium Cost).

Midwest Region Private (High Cost).

Midwest Region Ivy League.

Southern Region State (Resident).

Southern Region State (Nonresident).

Southern Region Private (Medium Cost).

Southern Region Private (High Cost).

Southern Region Ivy League.

Northeast Region State (Resident).

Northeast Region State (Nonresident).

Northeast Region Private (Medium Cost).

Northeast Region Private (High Cost).

Northeast Region Ivy League.

APPENDIX B: How to Install The College Savings Calculator™.

APPENDIX C: The Financial Aid Test™Input Form and Instructions.

APPENDIX D: How to Install The Financial Aid Test™.

APPENDIX E: How to Install The College Funding Integrator™.

APPENDIX F: Helpful Information Sources for the Planner.

APPENDIX G: How to Contact State Departments of Education.

Index.