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Oh those cute and cuddly babies, and challenging toddlers, and sweet children, and pre-teens, and teenagers, oh my! You love your children with all your heart, but it's hard to focus on the future when you have a mortgage or rent, bills, and retirement. One of the easiest ways to prepare for your children's future is to set up a 529 account. What is a 529? 529 plans, named after Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code, are tax-advantaged plans which may be used for saving for future higher education expenses (tuition, books, etc.) for a designated beneficiary. In 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expanded 529 plans to also include K-12 tuition and expenses. There are typically two types of plans: (1) prepaid plans also known as guaranteed savings plans (GSP); and (2) investment plans. The guaranteed savings plan allows for the purchase of tuition credits to be used in the future at current rates. In the GSP plan, you do not need to worry about the stock market and per...

Money in, money out. Every month you play the number game. Your paycheck gets auto deposited in your bank account and goes out to the rent, utilities, credit card or student loans. If there is anything left over after everyone else has been paid, you might throw some extra into your savings account. Bills first, Fun next, Savings last. You might even have a savings goal: 6 months of expenses as a safety net or saving for long term goals like a down payment on a house or even early retirement. But what if I told you that you shouldn't pay your bills first every month? What if I told you that the order should be Me first, Bills next, Fun last? When asked, most people will agree that saving money is critically important. Emergency funds give peace of mind and if we ever want to retire someday we have a retirement goal. But very few save money. Saving money is hard when we want things NOW. Getting into the habit of saving is easy if you make a few simple changes. The fi...