How can families minimize college debt with strategic planning?

Strategic college funding planning helps families evaluate all available options including scholarships, loan comparisons, and alternative savings strategies. Working with a funding specialist allows families to make informed decisions that reduce overall debt and protect long-term financial stability.

What are the drawbacks of using a 529 account to pay for college?

529 accounts come with limitations including restricted use of funds, potential impact on financial aid eligibility, and penalties for non-qualified withdrawals. Alternative funding strategies may offer more flexibility, uninterrupted compound interest growth, and better long-term financial outcomes for families.

How does comparing private student loan rates help families save money?

Comparing private loan rates through a platform like Sparrow allows families to submit one application and receive pre-qualified rates from multiple lenders simultaneously. This saves time, removes guesswork, and ensures families can select the most favorable loan terms for their specific financial situation.

What is the Retirement Scholarship Strategy?

The Retirement Scholarship Strategy is an approach that allows families to save and earn uninterrupted compound interest while using those savings to secure a lower-rate loan to pay for college. The goal is to recover college costs over time without sacrificing long-term retirement savings.

Criteria for Choosing a College

On February 02, 2018
In Choosing A College

Choosing the college you will attend to prepare for your future is extremely important. This choice shouldn’t be based on the fact that your best friend is going there, what fraternities or sororities are available or because that’s where “so-and-so” went when they were your age. It’s not a coin toss, it’s a process!

(more…) Read More»

Do You Need Money for College?

On December 15, 2017
In College Planning, Financing College

Will you be a fireman, a doctor, a teacher or an attorney?

Ever since you were a little kid, but even more so now that you’re getting ready to graduate from high school, people have asked….”What do you want to be when you grow up?”

Well, the time has arrived, you’ve grown up…maybe you know what you want to be and maybe you don’t. Even if you think you’ve decided, that could change a time or two.

The important thing now is getting enrolled in college, and to do that…

(more…) Read More»

Have You Begun to Plan for College?

On November 18, 2017
In College Planning

Planning for your son or daughter’s college education is a huge undertaking. Many people begin when their children are toddlers, and many wait until their child is in high school and ready to graduate. In today’s world, it’s imperative to have a good college education. Most employers are requiring degrees before they will even interview a potential job applicant. So as a parent, we want our children to have a good education and a good college experience. We want them to be successful in life. If you’re among those who haven’t been growing a college fund during the life of your child, giving them a good education is still possible.

(more…) Read More»

Goucher College

On March 26, 2017
In Colleges

I’ll bet you have probably never heard of Goucher College in Towson, Maryland. It is one of the best-kept secrets of the top coed colleges, located in a major urban area – Baltimore. This college is set up so that students have the opportunity, regardless of their major, to find at least one study abroad program that will fit their schedule. They have 2 full semesters with two, three-week terms in January and May. The best part is that they make it so the study abroad program is at no extra cost. How great is that?

(more…) Read More»

Do You Need Financial Aid for College?

On February 24, 2017
In College Planning, Financing College

How to get financial aid for college shouldn’t seem like such a mystery, but many upcoming college students don’t know where to begin.

They want to go to college, but don’t have the finances available to them to pay for it…this is not only their plight, but was the plight of many who have gone before, and are now either attending or have graduated from college.

If you find yourself, or someone you know in this situation, financial aid is probably your answer.

What is financial aid?

There is really no reason that anyone who wants to go to college should not be able to afford it. There are funds available to assist eligible students pay for their higher education that come from:

Private funding
Federal funding
State funding
Institutional funding

The money can be used in conjunction with grants, loans, scholarships or even student contributions.

The difficult thing is knowing which type of aid is best for you and your situation. Which type of aid is a loan and needs to be paid back and when do you have to start paying them back? Is it better to get federal or state funding?

There are so many questions that need to be answered…it could make you want to throw your arms in the air and forget it.

Don’t get frustrated – it’s absolutely not necessary. I can help you get through the maze they call financial aid and help you choose the solution that is best for you.

Who am I and how can I help you?

I am a college planning coach.
My objective is to help you figure out how to pay for your college education and hopefully eliminate some of the financial stress on you and your family.
I can help you determine what level of financial aid you can qualify for, then help you apply for it.
Although I don’t provide money for college, I will help you identify the best tools available to you.
I can help you prepare for SAT/ACT testing
I can help you choose the right college

I can help your college planning experience be so much easier!

Watch for my free Webinars and call for a free personal consultation.

Crystal Clear College Planning

Blog

Criteria for Choosing a College

Do You Need Money for College?

Have You Begun to Plan for College?

Goucher College

Do You Need Financial Aid for College?

What is financial aid?

Who am I and how can I help you?

Recent Blog Articles

Blog Archives

Blog Categories

Sign Up for Our Newsletter