– News & Research
– Data
– ABLE Act Column
– Events

529 Dash, Required Reading for Your 529 Education: The goal of the 529 Dash is to address the specific needs and concerns of advisers and institutions who sell and service families and employers in the education financial planning process by creating and sharing industry relevant news, product training and best practices, while also building awareness and understanding of the importance of 529s, ABLE accounts and education financial planning.

Please Read, Engage and Share.

Paul Curley, CFA
Editor-in-Chief of 529 Dash
Director of Savings Research
paul.curley@strategic-i.com
Twitter: @PaulCurleyBC

Here is what you need to know from stories, research and data released this week:

• Bright Horizons, “Taking on the myths of education benefits.” Editor's Take: Top-5 myths and their realities are revealed in the article. Thank you Bright Horizons for discussing college financial planning employer benefits.
• Next Level Finance, “Investable assets: Why you should run hard to the key level of $500,000.” Editor's Take: While not directly related to education financial planning, the article does provide a graphic on the importance of saving automatically and increasing ones saving rate.
• Philadelphia Family, “Cents and sensibility teaches families financial literacy at Please Touch Museum.” Editor's Take: Starting the financial literacy discussion at a young age can help your clients to create the right foundation for education financial planning at a later stage in life. In the meantime, thank you Philadelphia and PNC for adding a financial literacy section to the Please Touch Museum.

Here is the latest 529 and ABLE market data by Strategic Insight that can be used by the media and other organizations.

ABLE accounts are tax-advantaged savings accounts for certain individuals with disabilities and their families. News, Research, Data & Resources:

• Legal Examiner, “What is an ABLE Account?” Editor's Take: A solid refresher on fundamental content.
• Webinar, “ABLE accounts and special needs trusts.” Editor's Take: On January 31, ABLE Resource Center will host a webinar from 2pm to 3pm on this timely and important topic. Click the link to register.
• Twitter, “Tweets. Media.” Editor's Take: This section provides links to live photos taken and posted over the past week by ABLE program managers, and this week includes a post by ABLE New Mexico. Thank you for building awareness through outreach which will continue to help more families to successfully use ABLE accounts.

Events: Strategic Insight ABLE Summit 2019 will be held on September 25, 2019, at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, Florida, to deliver product training, insight and networking opportunities to support the successful implementation and growth of ABLE accounts. Please save the date, and thank you for the support.

Save the Date: Strategic Insight 529 Conference 2019 will be held from September 23-25, 2019, at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, Florida. Sessions:

• 529 Conference: A highly interactive and educational industry gathering with the entire education financial planning ecosystem.
• 529 Essentials: A pre-conference session to train professionals on 529 plans and education financial planning in a constantly evolving market.
• ABLE Summit: A post-conference session to deliver training, insight and networking opportunities to support the successful implementation and growth of ABLE accounts.

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