Wednesday, December 28, 2005

I've been doing quite a bit of research in 529 plans. These state sponsored plans allow one to invest and receive tax-free investment income for the purpose of education. I had four options to choose from to begin saving. The first was a no fee savings, but this is taxable. The next was Minnesota's plan since they match, but only if your income is less than a certain amount. I looked at an employee sponsored plan, but the fees were no better than going at it alone. The last is investing through uPromise. They offer a choice between four state plans, and allow you to earn additional money by using a registered credit card or shopping with one of their online partners. If you're comfortable shopping online, they seem to have quite the spread of opportunities to get free money. The expense ratio is in par with others. There is an annual fee, but that should easily be taken care of with the earnings.