– 529 Insiders Article of the Week
– News
– Research
– Data
– ABLE Act Column
– Events
– Quote of the Week

529 Dash, Required Reading for Your 529 Education: The goal of the 529 Dash is to address the specific needs and concerns of advisers, accountants and estate planners who sell and service families and institutions in the college financial planning process by providing industry relevant news, product training and best practices.

Please Read, Engage and Share.

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

Target Market Analysis: Total College Savings Market Sizing

What is the total amount of assets invested for college savings across all investment vehicles?

Here is what you need to know from stories released this week.

– Inside Higher Ed, “Net price keeps creeping up.” Editor’s Take: College Board has released its annual Trends in College Pricing and Trends in Student Aid report.
– Morningstar, “Morningstar names best 529 college savings plans for 2017.” Editor’s Take: Thank you Leo Acheson of Morningstar for presenting at the 529 Conference 2017, and for helping to build awareness and understanding of 529s and college financial planning. Read the article to learn more.
– Wall Street Journal, “To maximize college financial aid, timing is key.” Editor’s Take: Timely overview and explanation of the Prior-Prior update to filing FAFSA application for your clients.
– PLANADVISOR, “Laden with student debt.” Editor’s Take: Thank you for covering college financial planning as an employer benefit, and please read the article to learn more about this trend.

Last Week’s Most Read Article:
– Kiplinger, “How to fill out a FAFSA for college financial aid.” Editor’s Take: Timely topic that discusses common financial aid questions by clients.

Here is what you need to know from data and research released this week.

– 44% of Americans are unable to pay for an emergency that costs $400. Editor’s Take: Help your clients to save and save efficiently.
– 33% of student loan debt holders would give up retirement benefits if it meant that they would receive a student loan debt repayment benefit. Editor’s Take: Plan advisers need to broaden their definition of employee benefits to include college financial planning benefits to align with the needs and demands of current and target employees.
– 21% of Americans hold student loan debt. Editor’s Take: The percentage varies by age, and is an issue across all generations. While 41% of Millennials do hold student loan debt, the rate decreases to 26% of Generation X’ers, 13% of Baby Boomers and 3% of those in the Silent Generation.

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

This week’s top news, resources, legislative updates and product announcements relating to ABLE accounts, which are tax-advantaged savings accounts for certain individuals with disabilities and their families.

News, Research, Data & Resources:
– YouTube, “What you need to know about ABLE Accounts” by Patricia Kefalas Dudek. Editor’s Take: This 75-minute webinar provides an introductory overview of ABLE Accounts.
– Littman Krooks, “ABLE accounts: What you need to know.” Editor’s Take: 529 Essentials of ABLE accounts. Read the ten questions to make sure you are up to speed.
– CNBC, “How to set up a special needs trust.” Editor’s Take: Informative article that also discusses ABLE accounts.
– 529 Insiders, “529 & ABLE 2Q 2017 529 Data Highlights.” Editor’s Take: ABLE is successfully helping a growing number of families to save for qualified expenses.

Events:
– Strategic Insight ABLE Summit 2018 will be held on September 26, 2018, at the JW Marriott Orlando, Grande Lakes.
– Strategic Insight ABLE Summit 2019 will be held on September 25, 2019, at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island

Save the Date:
– 529 Conference 2018: September 24-26, 2018 – JW Marriott Orlando, Grande Lakes
– 529 Conference 2019: September 23-25, 2019 – Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island

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

To inquire about having Paul speak at your event, please email: paul.curley@strategic-i.com

“It is worth my time to help my clients with their greatest financial concern of college financial planning, and to manage that goal alongside their other goals as well.”

Mark Struthers, CFA, Founder of Sona Financial & Presenter at 529 Conference 2017

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